The Measure of a Hero
by Ellabee15
Summary: After the Glades fall strange things begin happening in Starling.
1. Chapter 1

"That's the third time this week." Dick said as he came down into the door.

"I don't get it, there was clearly a 911 call which went largely ignored because it's the glades and I checked the security camera." Felicity pointed to the screen. "There's absolutely no explanation for what I saw."

Digg frowned as Felicity played back the footage. There was the store where the supposed robbery was taking place. A masked man with a gun clearly entered the store. Then things got complicated. In the blink of an eye the masked man was outside, tied to the streetlamp, the gun lying broken on the ground.

"When I got there, that's what it look like." Digg said. "And I was only about 5 minutes away."

"I don't know what to tell you, the camera doesn't lie." Felicity glared. "Which is frustrating because what it's saying is impossible." She replayed the footage for about the hundredth time.

They both looked back at the screen.

"Any luck finding him?" Digg asked, quietly. Felicity bit her lip and shook her head.

"The last postcard Thea got was from Venice, but that was another dead end. Most tourist stores don't keep digital records so there's nothing I can do." Her voice softened and she looked down at the keyboard.

"Hey," Digg put his hand on her shoulder. "It's okay."

"No it's not," Felicity pushed his hand away. "everyone's under investigation at work, there's a giant hole in the city because we didn't stop Merlyn, we can't find Oliver anywhere and now something is running around stopping crime…" She paused. "Okay that last thing isn't bad, but I don't like things I don't understand."

Digg sighed. "Maybe we need a break." He looked around at the lair. "Hanging out down here too much can't be healthy."

"I'm not giving up." Felicity said stubbornly, replaying the video. "Maybe if I slow down the play time…" The screens went out. "HEY!" She turned to glare at Digg who was holding the computer cords in his hands, having clearly just unplugged them. "Do you have any idea how stupid that was? You never just rip the plug out of a computer, how –"

"FELICITY." Digg shouted over her. "You're spiraling. Go home, sleep and don't come back down here for a few days. You're obsessing and I refuse to see the darkness of this place swallow you up.'

"But-"

"No."

"Can I just-"

"Go home." Digg crossed his arms and frowned at her.

Felicity huffed. "Fine, but I'm only going because it suits me." She grabbed her bag and went to the stairs.

"You'll thank me later." Digg called after her.

* * *

Clark watched the small blonde as she came out of a side entrance into the alley. He'd followed her partner here after he'd noticed him showing up at the scene of the almost robbery. It had been the third time he'd shown up at one of the crimes he'd stopped. Clark had been worried that he was investigating him, but apparently he and his blonde partner had no idea what was happening. They were genuinely trying to help the people of the Glades. Clark pulled his collar up. Maybe he should move on, find a new town. It was dangerous to stay in one place for too long and the two people in the basement were already suspicious that something was wrong. But then Clark looked around at the Glades. People here had had their lives torn apart. They needed help and hope. He would stay a little longer and help with the reconstruction. He'd just have to be more careful to not show up on the radar of the blonde and her partner.


	2. Chapter 2

Felicity braced herself and helped push the piece of rubble out of the way. She and a group of volunteers from QC had come to help clear the destruction of the glades and look for survivors. Standing on what was left of an apartment building with her coworker Marie, she was about to reach for another piece of the building when a small cry caught her attention.

"THERE'S SOMEONE DOWN HERE." Felicity shouted.

"It's been a week, you're imagining things." Marie said, dismissively. "No one could have survived that long."

"I know what I heard." Felicity insisted, getting on her knees and digging through the ruins. A tall man with dark hair and glasses moved next to her. "There's someone down there." She pointed. "I heard a cry…maybe it's a baby?"

He looked where she was pointing. His gaze so intense, it almost seemed like he was looking through the rubble, then began helping her dig.

After about a minute, there was another cry. This time, Marie heard it too. Finally they pushed a door off a bath tub. Inside was a young woman clutching a baby to her chest. The man pressed his fingers to her neck looking for a pulse while Marie ran off to find a doctor. He shook his head. The baby let out another wail. Felicity gently eased the baby out of his mother's arms. The baby grabbed weakly for his mother, his fingers grabbing one of her braids. Felicity sat on the ruins, trying to comfort him, tears spilling out of her eyes.

"She saved him." The man said, pointing to the young woman's body. "There was water driping out of the faucet so he had something to drink and she shielded him from being crushed; that's how he managed to stay alive so long." He reached out and gently wiped away some of the dust from the baby's face and chest. Felicity looked down at the infant. He couldn't be more than 3 months old. His tears cleared away some of the dust on his face. The startling contrast between the white of the dust and his dark skin tone made him look even more gaunt and ill than the week's worth of starvation.

"He's all alone." Felicity murmured. Marie came back with a paramedic. There were camera flashes going off as Felicity handed off the baby. Felicity glared towards the man with a camera. The Glades were crawling with reporters, all looking to document the destruction of the glades.

"Excuse me, Miss?" the reporter next to the camera man said. "Starling City Daily news. Can we have a quote about how it felt when you saved that baby?"

"I didn't." Felicity said, standing. "I think the glades have suffered enough without being exploited to sell your newspapers." She pushed past him.

"He was just trying to tell people what's happening here." The man who'd helped her get the baby out was standing next to her. Felicity snorted.

"That child is going to grow up without a mother. If that reporter really wanted to tell the truth, he'd find out the mother's story and publish that. Instead he wants the picture of the blonde holding a black baby that she's snatched from the jaws of death with the help of a tall, dark, and handsome man with a strong jawline." Felicity glared back at the reporter. "He's a vulture, picking at the bones of the dead."

There was a warmth as the man gently put his hand on her arm. Then he tugged her away from the ruined building.

"How long have you been out here?" He asked, his brow furrowing in concern.

"I don't know…since…6?" She retied her ponytail and took off her glasses and wiped her eyes.

"It's 5:30." The man's concern looked at her in alarm. "There's been enough death without you dropping because of exhaustion. Come on, I'll buy you dinner."

Felicity followed him away from the epicenter. He paused, looking around. "Do you know any good places to eat around here?"

"There's a Big Belly Burger about 3 blocks from here." She pointed. By the time they made it to the restaurant, she was ready to drop. Sitting her down at a booth, the man went to order from the counter, then came back from 2 glasses of water. Felicity glared at them.

"Don't take this the wrong way, but I don't accept drinks I haven't seen prepared." She tilted her head and looked at him. "I don't even know your name."

He leaned back and smirked. "It's tall, dark, and handsome man with a strong jawline." He said.

Felicity crossed her arms.

"Clark." He said.

"You got a last name, Clark?"

He gave her another enigmatic smile.

She shook her hand. "A handsome man with a mystery, that doesn't sound dangerous at all." She muttered.

"I don't know if I should be flattered or insulted." Clark said. Felicity covered her face.

"I should warn you that I don't usually have a brain to mouth filter and seeing as I'm basically dead on my feet, I definitely won't have one now." She yawned. "Which is really bad because you are really attractive." She winced. "Shut up, shut up."

Clark was about to respond when a waitress came over with their food. Clark asked her for another glass of water.

"You two helping in the quake zone?" The waitress asked.

Felicity nodded. She gave them a look of gratitude.

"My nephew was pulled from the wreck 3 days ago. He almost didn't make it, but a man found him. No one was even looking where he was trapped and the doctors said that if he hadn't been found he'd have been dead in a matter of hours." She left and came back with Felicity's water and two cups of coffee. "They're on the house." She said when Clark tried to protest. "Seeing you two and people like you help, it gives me hope that there's some good in people." She smiled and walked away.

Felicity downed the entire glass of water. "there's been a lot of stories like that." She said. "People pulled out of the wreckage in miraculous rescues. There's been talk of some kind of guardian angel."

Clark bit his lip. "Well, that's ridiculous. You pulled off a miraculous rescue and you don't seem to be supernatural." He smiled. "Although not telling me your name does make you seem very mysterious."

"Felicity." She said, picking at her fries.

"Felicity." He repeated, scrutinizing her. Felicity bit her lip. His gaze was really intense. She frowned. There was something off about his eyes, that's when she noticed that his glasses weren't real. She closed her eyes. Typical, it was just her luck that the first attractive man to buy her dinner in who knows how long would be a hipster who wore black glasses ironically.

"I'm guessing you didn't mean to say that out loud." Clark said. "I don't wear them ironically."'

"They're not real." Felicity shot back. "I'm kind of an expert." She tapped the side of her glasses.

"They're…" Clark looked down at his fries. "This is embarrassing, but I just got my eyes laser fixed about a month ago and…I don't recognize my face without them."

Felicity smiled. "That might be the most adorkable thing I've ever heard." She yawned. "Sorry." She rubbed her eyes. "I didn't notice how tired I was."

"No need to apologize." Clark said, "anyone would be tired after digging through rubble for so long."

"You don't seem tired." Felicity remarked. He tensed slightly. "I guess it makes sense, though. With those arms you probably don't get tired easily." She looked at his arms; they were really toned, even more than Oliver's and probably as much as Digg's. "Are you former military?"

"No?" Clark seemed uneasy with her question.

"It's just that the only other person I know with arms like that was special forces… oh my god, I must sound like a creepy pervert. I'm sorry I wish I could blame it on my tiredness, but the truth is my mouth has a very inappropriate mind of its own."

Clark relaxed slightly. "It's okay." He said, running a hand through his hair, blushing slightly. "I grew up on a farm and as my parents got older I had to do a lot of heavy lifting."

"Well it paid off."

Felicity covered her face as she realized what she'd just blurted out. "I should go home." She mumbled. "Before you decide to press sexual harassment charges."

Clark laughed. "I don't mind." He said. "I don't usually get a lot of compliments."

Felicity looked at him incredulously.

"I tend to keep to myself." He said in response. "Do you need help getting home?"

Felicity shook her head. "I'm supposed to be meeting a friend of mine not too far from here. He can drive me home."

Clark's eyes narrowed and he looked out the restaurant door, suddenly distracted. "You shouldn't be walking around alone." He murmured, almost as if he was talking to himself. "It's dangerous out there. You could get hurt."

"I'm a big girl." Felicity said. She pulled out her wallet. "How much do I owe you for the food?"

Clark shook his head.

"Come on." Felicity insisted. "I can't let you pay for this."

"I already did." Clark said.

Felicity sighed. "Fine, but next time I …" Her eyes widened. "Not that I'm saying there should be a next time or that I expect there to be one because let's face it you probably think I'm crazy, which I'm definitely not helping by babbling." She bit her lip. Clark was smiling at her.

"You are definitely something." He said. Glancing at the door, he frowned. "Are you sure you'll be okay?"

Felicity nodded. He sighed in acquiescence. "Be careful."

"I will be." She stood, holding out her hand. Clark hesitated, before reaching his out. "See around." She said.

The corner of his mouth quirked up, "it was interesting talking to you, Felicity."

She turned and left Big Belly Burger, her cheeks flaming. That had been the single most bizarre meal of her life. She'd probably completely embarrassed herself. "See you around? Really Smoak?" She muttered as she made her way towards Verdant. "Is that really the best you could come up with? He's…well it doesn't matter what he thinks; you'll probably never see him again." She frowned. "And stop talking to yourself."


	3. Chapter 3

Clark watched Felicity leave. He should have stayed away, but that baby had needed help. He ran a hand through his hair. Felicity seemed nice, and most importantly she hadn't suspected anything about him. He wrung his hands, trying to decide what his next move would be when he heard something. A woman was being harassed…and by listening closer he realized it was Felicity. Leaving the Big Belly Burger, he rushed in the direction of the noise. Felicity was about 3 blocks away and a group of guys were harassing her. Clark recognized them as hoods. Ever since the earthquake and the vigilante's disappearance groups of young people wearing hoods would roam the glades and intimidate people. They'd gotten bolder in the last few days. He'd stopped at least 3 incidents, but there were always more.

He rushed in and pulled Felicity away from her would be attackers, leaving her in front of the club where he'd seen her leaving the other night; far away from her original position. Turning back, he grabbed the three boys and, disarming them, tied them up.

* * *

Felicity stood blinking on the sidewalk. Looking around she tried to understand how she'd gotten there. One second a group of hoods had been walking up to her, threatening her. Then the next second she was…in front of the alley next to Verdant.

"Diiiiigg." She shouted, running into the alley, not caring who saw or heard her. Opening the lair's side door she ran in. The lair was empty. Grabbing her phone, she steadied herself against the table trying to stop herself from shaking. "Pick up. Pick up. Pick up." she begged.

"Hey Felicity, don't worry; I'm driving to get you."

"Yeah, about that." Felicity said. "Don't bother. I'm…at the lair and…" Her voice cracked with fear.

"Felicity." Digg sounded concerned. "What's wrong?"

"Look, before you yell at me, I didn't mean to be here. Well, it was my plan to convince you to bring me here once you picked me up, but then something…unexplainable happened and…and…and." She felt a panic attack coming on.

"I'll be there." Digg said. Felicity stumbled into her computer chair and collapsed, trembling. She was sitting there staring straight at the floor when Digg came in about 10 minutes later.

"What happened?" he asked as he moved to lean against the table next to her.

"I was…I was walking by the quake site and a group of those Oliver imitators came up to me to try and rob me. I….I think I blinked and I was…standing right next to Verdant." She grabbed the arm rests. "I don't know how I got there, but..." She covered her mouth.

"Deep breaths." Digg said, handing her a paper bag. Felicity breathed into it.

"Something grabbed me." She said, pulling the bag away from her face. "It was only for a second, but I think..." she shook her head. "I know. I know I felt hands…" She paused. "Something…someone carried me."

"Slow down." Digg said. "Start from the beginning and don't leave anything out."

"I was helping out at the quake site and…there was a baby in the rubble and this guy helped me get it out. Then there was this reporter and I got mad and ended up having dinner with the guy who helped me save the baby, and he was really beyond gorgeous, and that's not relevant right now. I left the Big Belly Burger and that's when…the event happened. I never saw who it was." She looked up at Digg. "I promise I'm not crazy. Please say you believe me."

Digg looked at her computers. "I believe you." He murmured. "Maybe you can see something on the street cameras." He suggested.

Felicity nodded. Numbly turning on the computers, she pulled up the footage from the camera in front of the restaurant.

"There I am leaving." She pointed, then switched the camera angle. "I'm walking down the street. Fast forward about 3 blocks….enter the bad guys then….boom." She'd vanished from the feed. Pulling up the camera from outside the club, she pointed to the street corner. There was nothing, then suddenly she appeared out of nowhere.

"And you say you felt hands?" Digg asked.

Felicity nodded.

"So…whatever saved you from those muggers and stopped those crimes in the glades….is a person." Digg shook his head.

"This is way too X files for me." Felicity replayed the footage. "Do you think it's an alien?"

Digg rubbed the back of his neck, trying to process, "one thing's for sure; you're not spending tonight down here in front of this computer."

"Digg." Felicity protested.

"If there's anything too big, then we've got that alert system…and whatever saved you can probably handle it."

"What about Oliver?" Felicity asked softly.

"You don't have a lead." Digg said. "Best case scenario, you end up chasing smoke until the morning when I find you asleep with your face on the keyboard."

"That…only happened once."

"Uh huh." Digg crossed his arms.

"An argument could be made for twice." Felicity muttered.

"We can get take out and you can show me the TV show you're always rambling about."

Felicity's jaw dropped. "Are you seriously violating the sanctity of Doctor Who to manipulate me?"

Digg smiled.

"John, this is serious." She pointed to the screen. "Someone's out there…."

"And we don't have the first clue how to find out who or what they are." Digg retorted. "Are you going to glare at the screen until it gives you answers? That's no way to live."

"It's not like I was miss popularity before." Felicity grumbled. "I don't have a whole army of friends that I'm blowing off to be here."

Digg put his hand on her shoulder. "You have me."

Until he leaves. Felicity thought to herself.

"So, pizza or Chinese?" Digg asked.

"I already ate dinner so…ice cream?" She said. Digg smiled and held out a hand to help her to her feet.

"BTW, I am holding you to that Doctor Who deal." She said.

"Wouldn't expect any less."

* * *

Clark listened to Felicity and her friend's conversation from a hiding spot on the roof of the building. It was definitely dangerous to stay now. He wondered how long it would take them to figure out the connection between the crime stopper and the 'angel' of the quake site. He couldn't risk exposure. His father's warnings about the necessity of keeping his origins and abilities a secret played through his mind. Every time he used his strength or his speed, he felt as though he'd betrayed Johnathan Kent. He'd died to keep Clark's difference a secret and now here he was leaving himself open to people discovering his secret. A voice in the back of his mind pointed out that Felicity could have been seriously hurt that night if he hadn't intervened and that she hadn't seen him. There was no reason to leave Starling, which clearly needed…. He shook his head in disgust. A hero? Where would these people get that? They'd had the hood, a man who lived in darkness and murdered those he thought unworthy of his city. Then he'd disappeared after the challenge of protecting the city had gotten too much for him.

Clark looked around. Maybe Starling did need a hero, but he wasn't sure it could be him. He was no hero. He wasn't even human.

He watched as Felicity and her friend left the club. She seemed calmer than after he'd dropped her off, but she was still shaken.

"I wish I could have talked to them." She told her friend. "I didn't get a chance to say thank you."

Clark smiled as he watched them leave. Felicity seemed like a very nice person, and, were his circumstances different, he would have liked to get to know her better.

A child's cry broke through the night. He turned and took off, his train of thought broken as he focused on the task at hand.

* * *

Hours later, Felicity sat up in alarm on her couch. Digg was passed out on the sofa. The Doctor who DVD menu was playing on the TV and there was a half eaten pizza on the coffee table with a carton of ice cream next to it.

"Digg." She said, getting up and shaking him. He kept sleeping. "DIGG." She shouted.

"Wha…what?" He sat up, looking around in apprehension and confusion.

"How did the…person, know to drop me next to Verdant?"


	4. Chapter 4

Felicity had been going over ways to draw out her mysterious savior. Each idea she came up with involved putting herself in danger which was seriously not an option. There was no way to guarantee that the mystery savior, whoever they were, would see what was happening and get to her on time. There was too much risk involved, but she honestly didn't know what to do. She had been going over recent crime stats to try and triangulate a radius to narrow down her search parameters. This was difficult because it mean hacking into the police database and finding all the reports where the suspects had been found tied up or subdued before the police arrived and then eliminating all the ones that had been Digg doing vigilante work. There were more incidents than she'd first anticipated. Women reporting someone stopping men from attacking them, children saying that people had broken into their homes when their parents were out only to find themselves tied to a street lamp outside, store owners, shop keepers, bank tellers, ordinary people walking down the street; whoever this person was, they were clearly doing a lot of good for the people of Starling.

Felicity stretched and sat back in her chair, cracking her neck muscles and wincing at the noise they made. Though it was technically her work time, there wasn't much to do at Queen Consolidated since the earthquake. She sighed and looked at the clock; it was almost lunch time. Deciding some fresh air might jolt something in her brain; she transferred the search to her tablet and left the building. The data had just compiled when she stepped out of the entrance, but before she could process what the search had uncovered she walked straight into someone.

"I'm sorry." She squeaked as she dropped her tablet. "Fuck." She muttered staring in horror at the mess. The screen was shattered and a part of it was broken. 2 days of research, down the drain. She'd have to start over.

"Watch where you're going." An angry voice said, pushing her down. Felicity fell and her glasses dropped to the ground.

"Now now." A smooth male voice said. "There's no need for this unpleasantness." Felicity squinted at the man who'd spoken. He was the one she'd bumped into, and the man who'd pushed her down was… a body guard? The man she'd bumped into knelt down and picked up her glasses, handing them to her. "I apologize Ms…?"

"Smoak." She said, taking the glasses and putting them back on. "Felicity Smo-" The man in front of her came into focus and her jaw dropped. "oak." She squeaked. There was no mistaking who he was, especially since he was on the cover of the Wall Street journal every other week, on every list of the top richest people on the planet and had been on the cover of Time magazine just last week. "You're…you're Lex Luthor."

Luthor smiled and picked up her tablet. "It appears I have damaged your tablet." He said as Felicity gaped at him.

"I…I should have been watching where I was going." She murmured, pushing her hair back from her face. She'd just walked into number 4 on Forbes' billionaire list and number 3 on the list of most eligible bachelors in the US…her mother had mentioned that last fact and why she was thinking about it now, she would never know. Though considering that Oliver was number 2 she was just a meeting with Bruce Wayne away from rounding out the top 3.

"Nonsense." Luthor said. "I think we were both distracted. I'll have a new tablet sent to you."

"That's…not necessary, Mr. Luthor, sir."

"I insist." He said in a tone that brokered no argument. Felicity gulped; though Luthor was smiling, there was a dark edge to his words that made her skin crawl. She nodded nervously.

"Thanks, I'm sure you have more important things to do then be here on your knees with me. I didn't mean it in a sexual way, I most definitely did not mean it that way my brain is just terrifyingly unable to phrase things like a normal person and you definitely have better places to be here listening to the crazy woman who almost assaulted you…accidentally though." She closed her eyes. What was wrong with her? Luthor let out a low laugh. He looked at the body guard who'd pushed her to the ground and raised an eyebrow.

"I apologize Ms. Smoak." The bodyguard said.

Felicity nodded, dazed. That type of authority was…terrifying.

"See, no harm done." Luthor said, standing and offering Felicity his hand to help her to her feet. "I hope to be seeing more of you, Ms. Smoak." He added, not letting go of her hand. She blushed and looked at the ground, unsure how to respond. He squeezed her hand, then let go and stepped out of her way.

She took hold of her now useless tablet and walked away.

* * *

Luthor watched the young woman's retreating back "That went even better than I could have planned." He said in an undertone. He'd expected to have to charm his way into Felicity Smoak's office in the IT department to get a chance to meet her, but then here she was. Walking right into him like a divine offering. "Mercy, have a new tablet sent to Ms. Smoak's address." He turned to building and walked inside.

"Yes Mr. Luthor." His assistant, Mercy Graves said. "Can I just ask why we're bothering with this city…and this company? Queen Consolidated is nowhere near as powerful as Lex Corp." She frowned as they got onto the elevator going up to the executive floor. "Shouldn't we be focused on out performing our actual competition?"

"Ah, Queen Consolidated is part of my plans." Luthor said. "I'm here to take control of it. After all, Moira Queen is such a dear old friend." The elevator opened and they stepped out and began making their way to the conference room. "I should look after it for it while she sits in jail, just like I so generously took charge of Merlyn Global after Malcolm's demise." He smiled. "As for this city, there have been…interesting reports here. I confess that I am…curious."

"And the girl?" Mercy pressed, clearly not seeing the brilliance of his plans. It was to be expected, no one was Luthor's intellectual equal.

"A simple distraction." Luthor shrugged. "Had my hiring department not been full of incompetents she'd be in Metropolis now working for me." He smiled, or under me he thought privately remembering Felicity Smoak's flushed face as she'd accidentally sputtered a filthy innuendo about him. He'd wanted her for his company when she graduated from MIT because she was one of the best and Luthor demanded he best. But now…She was beautiful and intelligent. He'd enjoy getting closer to her. Even if she was nowhere near his level, it didn't mean he couldn't enjoy what she had to offer. "As for our competition." He chuckled darkly. "That spoiled playboy Wayne is too busy chasing after models to pay attention to his company. He won't know what hit him."


	5. Chapter 5

Felicity made her way to a small deli a few blocks over. Ordering a cup of coffee and a sandwich, she took the coffee and made her way to the tables outside to wait for her sandwich. What could Lex Luthor want in Starling? And why did he seem so…interested in her? She shook her head, she was probably deluding herself. She wasn't the type of woman to interest a man like Lex Luthor.

SLAM. She walked straight into someone, her coffee spilling everywhere. The person grabbed her arms before she could fall backwards.

"I am so sorry." He said, "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I …" she looked up. "Clark?"

Sure enough, it was Clark; the mysterious handsome stranger who she'd had dinner that one time in a non-date way.

"Felicity." He smiled. "I'm sorry I bumped into you, I was distracted."

"Me too." She said, looking down at his clothes. "I'm sorry about…" She motioned at his chest. "Are you okay? That was scalding hot coffee."

"I…" Clark frowned and looked down. "It does hurt, but I'm trying not to show it."

"Why, trying to impress someone?" Felicity asked. Clark blushed.

"Here," He said. "Let me get you a new cup."

"Oh, you really don't have to." She said. Clark shrugged.

"My ma would have my hide if she found out I almost knocked a woman over, spilled her drink and didn't offer to get her a new one." He smiled. Felicity noted a slight accent.

"And my mom would probably tell me that I was crazy to not let a good looking guy buy me a drink." Felicity said, then she flushed. "Though she probably meant alcohol…and you really didn't need to know that about…I'll just shut up now." Clark gave her an adorable lopsided smile.

"How about neither of us disappoints our mothers." He motioned to a seat at one of the tables. "I'll go get you a new cup."

Felicity sat down. Clark came out a few minutes later holding her sandwich and a new cup of coffee.

"Mmmm caffeine." She said, taking a sip. Frowning she looked over at Clark.

"Is it not good?" He asked, drumming his fingers nervously.

"No…" Felicity said looking at the cup. "I mean yes, it is good, it's actually exactly how I like it." She looked at him in confusion. "How did you know?"

He shrugged. "Magic?"

Felicity crossed her arms. Clark sighed. "I um…" He cleared his throat and ran a hand through his hair. "I asked the guy behind the counter and he told me you added 3 sugars and creamer."

"Thanks." She mumbled, touched that he'd made the effort to learn her coffee order.

"So, what has you so nervous that you decided to drop coffee on people?" He smiled.

"Work stuff." Felicity smiled. "I…" she winced. "I work at Queen Consolidated." Clark raised an eyebrow. She'd expected this reaction; people hated QC because of the earthquake. She liked Clark and decided that all cards should be on the table, though she wasn't sure what the game was yet. "In IT." she added. "I…I didn't know about the whole evil city destroying machine and…I'm just trying to figure out where I fit in to all this. I've been questioning whether I should stay or…" She bit her lip. "I think I'm only staying out of loyalty to someone who isn't even here and…" She broke off. She'd decided to go with the work stress excuse because she couldn't tell him what was really going on, but inadvertently she'd been more honest with Clark than she'd been with herself. She let out a nervous chuckle. "I'm sorry; I don't know what came over me and made me babble to you."

Clark had been looking at her intensely and gave her a small smile. "It's okay."

"So, what makes you so distracted that you walk into crazy blondes who ramble too much and assault you with coffee cups?" She asked, trying to change the subject. He looked at the table in front of him and seemed to be weighing his words.

"Family stuff." He finally said. "And I…I've been debating whether or not to have a change in scenery." He looked at her, giving her the same intense look that made it seem as though he could see right through her. "I kinda like Starling and I thought I might stay a while."

"Well the good news is that property values are down." Felicity said, taking another sip. "The earthquake made a lot of people scared so those who still have places to live are selling them and getting as far away from here as they can." Inadvertently she thought of Oliver. Shaking her head, she forced herself to smile. "What do you do for work?'

If he seemed surprised by her quick change in topic he didn't say anything. "Whatever work I can get." He said. "Construction mostly."

"With those arms…" Felicity's eyes widened. "Sorry." She covered her face.

Clark gave her an amused look. "It's not what I want to do for the rest of my life, though." He said softly.

"What would that be?" Felicity asked. Clark straightened his glasses, suddenly embarrassed. "I won't judge." She added.

"It's not becoming a male stripper." He said.

"Oh darn." Felicity said sarcastically. Clark chuckled before continuing.

"I wanted to be a reporter." He shrugged.

"Like on Tv?"

"No." He looked down at his hands. "Like a writer. It probably sounds ridiculous, especially since print media is basically obsolete, but when I was a kid every Sunday morning I'd watch my dad read the Daily Planet over breakfast." He blushed. "I guess I wanted to travel and see the places the reporters would write about and tell people what was going on there."

Felicity bit her lip. The idea of a mini Clark staring wide eyed at a newspaper was too adorable for words. Her silence seemed to make Clark uncomfortable because he shifted and mumbled. "It's naïve, I know."

"No." Felicity said, reaching across the table and putting her hand on his. "I think it's really…" She couldn't find the right words. "It's rare to have someone who wants to write news for the sake of informing people." She smiled. She tilted her head and grinned. "So, you're from Kansas?"

Clark's eyes widened. "What makes you say that?" he said defensively.

"Well you didn't say New York Times, Washington Times, Gotham Gazette, or Boston Globe which eliminates the east coast." She counted the newspapers off. "You also didn't say San Francisco Chronicle, LA Times or National City Tribune which eliminates the West coast. You didn't say Central City Citizen which eliminates the more Western fly over states. You said the Planet, which is based in Metropolis."

"It's a national newspaper." Clark interrupted.

"True." Felicity said, "But you mentioned you grew up on a farm, add to that the slight accent that I heard when you mentioned your mother, coupled with the fact that you called her your ma, not your mom; it means that you came from an extremely rural area where the Planet would probably be your only big newspaper." She crossed her arms triumphantly. "The Planet is based in Metropolis, meaning you come from somewhere around there, if not Kansas, somewhere in the Midwest."

Clark gaped at her. "Are you some kind of detective?" He asked. Felicity giggled.

"Nope, just read a lot of Agatha Christie as a kid." She smiled. "So, am I right? I mean the shocked look on your face says I am, but I just want to be sure."

Clark sighed and nodded. "I'm from Kansas." He admitted.

"Is that all you're going to tell me?" She prompted. Clark nodded.

"I don't know where you're from." He pointed out. "Besides, I have to maintain my mysterious image somehow." Felicity snorted and looked at the table, rolling the coffee cup between her hands.

"I grew up in Vegas." She murmured. Clark looked at her in confusion.

"Really?"

"What?" Felicity put the cup down and crossed her arms, defensively.

"You just seem too…" He seemed to search for the right word. "Shy." He finally said. "Not that that's a bad thing."

"The city isn't all casinos and bars." Felicity said. "There's a residential part. And the people who live there aren't all show girls."

Clark nodded. "Sorry."

Felicity looked around; it was such a nice sunny day in Starling, which was rare. She hesitated to leave, but her lunch time was almost over; she needed to get back to QC. "I need to go back to the office." She mumbled.

"I'll walk you." Clark offered. They stood moving towards the QC building. There was a large crowd of protesters outside, which wasn't unusual. They'd been there several times over the last few days. "Are you going to be okay to go in?" Clark asked. Felicity nodded.

"I'm just going to go through the garage." She pointed. Turning to Clark she smiled. "It was really nice seeing you again, Clark from somewhere in Kansas." He flushed. "Maybe we could bump into each other again sometime and share some more details about each other." She looked down at his shirt. "I promise not to spill a hot liquid on you the nest time, though." Clark nodded.

"I'd like that, Felicity from Vegas." He said. They stood there awkwardly for a few minutes. Say something, Felicity shouted at herself.

"Um, here's my number." She said, pulling a piece of paper out of her bag and scribbling her number on it. "Maybe the next time we bump into each other it can be on purpose?" She held it out. For a second it seemed that Clark wasn't going to take it. Then he reached out and engulfed her hand in his. He really had big hands. Felicity forced herself to look up at him.

"Until next time then." He said, taking the paper and walking away. Felicity stood there watching him, dazed until Digg snapped her out of her wandering thoughts.

"Felicity."

She jumped out of her skin. "What…Digg." She said, clutching her chest. "You gave me a heart attack. Give girl some warning next time."

"I saw you standing out here and figured you needed help getting inside the building." Dig said but Felicity wasn't fooled.

"Sure you were." She said, making her way to the garage entrance. Digg held up his hands and followed.

"You got me." He said. "So, who was he?"

"The guy I told you about from the quake site." Felicity said. "I ran into him at the coffee shop, literally, I spilled my drink all over him. He was really nice about it though. Which is good, considering that the first time I ran into someone today I got pushed to the ground. By their bodyguard. Technically Lex Luthor was nice to me about being run into also, but-"

"Woah." They'd made it to the garage elevator and Digg put his hand on her arm. "Did you say Lex Luthor?"

Felicity blinked. "Yeah, I kinda ran into him and…" She cursed as she pulled out her tablet. "I broke my tablet, which is annoying because I almost had a lead on the whole mystery guardian angel thing."

"Felicity." Digg interrupted. "Did Lex Luthor mention why he was here?"

Felicity frowned. "No, but then again running into someone doesn't exactly give me the right to asked what they're doing here, especially if that someone is the CEO of one of the most powerful companies in the world." They got onto the elevator. "Do you think he's making a bid for the company?" She asked.

"I don't know." Digg said.

"Don't they brief you on these things in security?" She asked. "A change in leadership seems to be the kind of thing that might affect protocol." Digg had gotten a job as a security consultant at QC after the earthquake. The company was worried about potential backlash from angry protestors and Digg had his hands full training the security people to recognize threats.

He shook his head. "Whatever's happening is way above my pay grade." He raised an eyebrow. "You walked into Lex Luthor."

Felicity covered her face. "Yes." She said through gritted teeth. Digg laughed.

"I guess go big or go home."

Felicity glared at the elevator doors in front of her. "Keep laughing. I'll hack into your phone and change all your contact names."


	6. Chapter 6

The reloaded search had revealed no patterns, no discernable clues as to how they could find the angel. Digg made fun of her for the nickname, but she thought it was simpler than saying 'that person with possible superpowers who's been stopping crime, saving people from the rubble and stopped me from being mugged or worse.'

It had been 3 days and she and Digg were no closer to discovering who they were. And she was no closer to finding Oliver. She'd been running simultaneous searches trying to determine a location, but wherever he was; he was completely off grid.

"Urrrrrggh." She groaned, glaring at her screens. "Why are you doing this to me?"

"Felicity?" Marie ducked her head into her office. "What are you still doing here?"

Felicity glanced at the clock; it was 1:20. "Should I not be here?" She asked uncertainly.

Her coworker shook her head. "We have that meeting in 10 minutes. Come on."

Felicity got up and followed her into the hall towards the elevators. "What meeting?" She asked.

"Didn't you get the email?" Marie asked. "They wanted everyone to meet in Applied Sciences. They didn't say why."

Felicity gulped. "Applied Sciences?" No one had gone down there since the earthquake; some out of shame, but most out of fear; no one wanted to be connected with the massacre. They came into the large lab. Looking around, Felicity recognized people from every department. "Wow, they really meant everyone." She frowned. "Who's the they anyways: we don't have a CEO."

Marie didn't respond. She was staring at the front of the crowd where a podium had been set up in the center of lab. "Is that…Lex Luthor?"

Felicity's eyes widened as the Lex Corp CEO made his way to the podium. The crowd, which had been nervously silent, erupted into hushed whispers. Luthor looked up and everyone quieted immediately. Felicity shivered and cursed herself for not bringing a sweater. It was cold in the climate controlled lab, and Luthor's steely gaze didn't help with the temperature. Suddenly she felt someone cover her shoulders with a jacket.

"Better?" Digg murmured, putting a hand on her shoulder. Felicity gave him a grateful nod. Looking forward she caught sight of Lex Luthor staring straight at her. His eyes narrowed slightly at Digg's contact with her shoulder, but it was only a moment. The next second, he was clearing his throat, looking down at his podium, appearing to the assembled crowd as a benevolent CEO.

"I'm sure you have many questions." Luthor said. "What I'm about to share with you has been embargoed until tomorrow, but as employees of this company I believed you should be the first to know. You've been deceived by your leadership; they turned you into accomplices to one of the most horrifying massacres in the history of this country. That ends now. I am here." He smiled. "Moira Queen has handed over the keys to kingdom as it were. Effective immediately, I am acting CEO of Queen Consolidated as it transitions into a subsidiary of Lex Corp. I will make this company strong; I will ensure that this company achieves the greatness it is capable of." He looked straight at Felicity. "I believe that under my leadership, there's nothing we can't do."

Felicity bit her lip and looked at the ground. Digg was frowning. The crowd broke into applause. Luthor stood there and drank it all in, before waving his hands dismissively. "Back to work." He left the lab. People chatted excitedly as they made their way back towards their offices.

"Did that sound a little too…Cartoon villainy to you?" Felicity murmured as she walked into her office. Digg nodded.

"I also don't like the way he was looking at you." He said.

Felicity bit her lip; she'd thought she had imagined it, but Digg was one of the most perceptive people she knew. If he'd noticed, it had definitely happened.

"So, lunch?" She said, moving towards her menu drawer. "Chinese? Pizza? Big Belly Burger?" Digg shook his head, amused.

"Why do you even bother to give other choices when we both know you already made your decision?" He chuckled. Felicity grinned.

"Giving the little people an illusion of free will keeps them in line."

Digg coughed. "Little people?"

"Who I respect." Felicity said, "and not only because you have arms with the same circumference as my head."

About 30 minutes later they were eating greasy Big Belly goodness. "Any angel updates, Buffy?" Digg smirked.

"Ha ha." Felicity said. "Still nothing."

"And Oliver?" Digg asked.

Felicity shook her head. "I can't find anything." She said. "And the fact that Luthor's taken control of the company is…"

"If Moira ceded control there's nothing we can do." Digg said.

"But it's Oliver's company." Felicity insisted.

"He never wanted to control the company." Digg said. "And while Oliver is good at many things, I don't think being CEO is one of them." He shook his head. "I don't know, until we find him there's nothing we can do." He shrugged. "I'm not saying I like it."

"Does Luthor…unsettle you?" Felicity asked.

Digg nodded. "He's done a lot of good; most of the weapons and safety equipment I used in Special Forces was designed by Lex Corp." he stopped. "It saved the lives of many of my friends." He looked up. "But that doesn't mean I trust him. There's something …my gut tells me I shouldn't trust him."

"Ms. Smoak." A voice called. Felicity and Digg both froze and turned. Luthor's assistant was standing in the doorway. "Mr. Luthor would like me to take you to his office."

"Whaa…?" Felicity shook herself. "I mean, um… sure." She shrugged Digg's jacket off her shoulders and handed it back to him. He frowned at the assistant and stood.

"Mr. Luthor only wanted to see Ms. Smoak." The assistant said in a bored tone.

Looking up at Digg, Felicity gave him a nervous smile before following the assistant. They walked over to the executive elevator. A tense silence fell. "Did…did Mr. Luthor mention why he wanted to see me?" She asked. The assistant gave her a condescending look, but didn't respond. Felicity wrung her hands and looked at the doors. "Okay then." She muttered, her brain supplying all sorts of nightmarish scenarios which could justify the new CEO summoning her. The doors opened. The assistant stepped off and walked towards the office. Felicity scurried after her. She could see Luthor through the glass walls. He was standing, staring out at the city and talking on his cell phone. When the assistant walked into the outer office he turned.

"Have the press release ready for tomorrow morning, then leak the news tonight. I want stock prices up right out the gate." He hung up. "Mercy, bring in our guest and get us coffee."

The assistant nodded.

"Come in, Ms. Smoak." Luthor said, moving to stand behind the desk.

* * *

Lex watched as the blonde walked in. She was nervous; good. Intimidation was good. She'd be more willing to fall in line.

"It was an accident." Felicity blurted out. Lex arched an eyebrow.

"Oh?" He said.

"Bumping into you 3 days ago. It was an accident, and I'm really sorry and please don't fire me. Because, frankly you'd have to be insane to fire me because I'm really good at what I do and it wouldn't be in your best interest to get rid of me because I embarrassed you." Felicity bit her lip as Lex gave her an amused smile. She had more of a backbone than he'd given her credit for. Good; he didn't want this to be boring.

"I'm not going to fire you, Ms. Smoak." He said, motioning to the chair in front of his desk. Felicity moved forward and slid into the seat, clearly wary of him. "And I am well aware of your skills." He sat in his chair. "They are, in fact, why I called you here today." Mercy came back into the office carrying a tray. Pouring 2 cups, she handed him one, then gave one to Felicity. She went to stand behind Lex, staring Felicity down. Lex sighed. Mercy had his best interests at heart, but her presence wasn't conducive to his plan. While Ms. Smoak's intimidation was necessary, he wanted her focus completely on him. "That will be all, Mercy."

"Yes, sir." She said, leaving the office. Lex noted that Felicity wasn't drinking her coffee.

"It's not poisoned." He said, motioning to the cup. Felicity looked down.

"I… I didn't think it was." She said. "I just thought it would be better if I didn't accidentally spill it and embarrass myself. Though considering the craziness that usually comes out of my mouth, it might be a good idea to keep it busy." She turned a bright shade of red. Lex tilted his head.

"How do you like your new tablet?" He asked.

"It's great." Felicity said. "Thanks…." She bit her lip. "It actually was even better after I removed all the spyware from it." Lex kept his expression neutral, but inside he was shocked. He'd embedded the software himself in order to keep tabs on her. How had she managed to crack his encryption?

"Apologies. It was a standard Lex Corp company tablet." He shrugged. "I put that spyware to prevent my employees from using illegal websites during work hours."

"Well, it was my personal tablet, for personal things." Felicity said. "And no one needs to know about how much Doctor Who I watch in my spare time." She flushed, clearing her throat. "So, my skills?" Felicity asked, ducking her head.

Lex looked at her intently; she was delightful. He could tell that she'd probably had an impure idea about what skills he might require. There would be time for that later. He frowned to himself; he just needed to eliminate the competition. "Are you cold?" He asked, remembering the man in the meeting who offered her his jacket. He already had one of his men compiling a dossier on him, after this meeting he'd know everything there was to know about him and his relationship with Felicity.

"Cold?" she said slowly.

"The air conditioning in this building is a bit high." He said. Standing, he opened a box and held it out to her. It was filled with various scarves and shawls; he'd had it brought to him the second he'd left the meeting. Felicity frowned and shook her head. Lex bristled at her refusal, but put the box away. "I was looking over your credentials," he continued. "You are way too qualified to be simply working in IT. Moira and Mr. Steele knew this and didn't allow you to flourish in the way I know you can. They were probably afraid. It's the drawback of narrow minded people; they fear what they cannot understand." He smiled. "A mind like yours intimidates them and because they couldn't match your intellect, they hid you in that basement."

Felicity leaned back, nervous. "Uh huh."

He was coming on too strong, he knew. She was more exceptional than he'd first believed, going over her records and her ideas to upgrade the servers had made him suspect this, but if she was capable of decrypting code he'd written it was clear her talents were being wasted. His intentions towards the company would be greatly aided with her in his corner, but he needed her to agree to it first. It couldn't be coerced. He did possess the authority to transfer her to Metropolis, but it would be so much more appealing to have her go willingly. He smiled at the young blonde. She looked so much like a frightened deer, which was apt; he did so enjoy the hunt.

"I'm promoting you to the head of IT and creating a sub-department, which will answer to you, whose purpose will be to update and create better operating systems and any other coding advances you see fit. I want this company to succeed. You'll be conferring with the offices of Lex Corp in Metropolis." He noted the light in her eyes with satisfaction. That was enough for today. This game was delicate and would take time; she was too valuable a prize to spoil with hastiness. "Go down to Human Resources so they can finalize the paperwork and I'll see you at Saturday's meeting with the department heads."

She stood nervously. "Thank you Mr. Luthor." She said.

"Please." He said, holding out his hand. "Call me Lex."


	7. Chapter 7

Felicity was practically bouncing when she came into the lair later that night.

"What did Luthor want?" Digg asked.

"Oh nothing." Felicity sighed dramatically. "Just to make me the HEAD OF THE IT DEPARTMENT!" She clapped her hands and grinned. "Celebration? I'm thinking this calls for cake."

Digg frowned.

"Or a mopey brooding contest." Felicity sighed. "What's wrong?"

Digg shook his head. "There's just something…off about Luthor." He shrugged. "But I am happy for you, Felicity; you deserve that promotion."

Felicity grinned. "Hence, cake!"

Digg shook his head. "So, angel watch?"

Felicity nodded and went to the screens. "See the name is catching on." She said, sitting down. "I've got a plan."

Digg raised an eyebrow. "A plan?" He repeated.

"Yup." She pointed. "I couldn't get anything on the security cameras…sooooo." She turned on her computers and pulled up images from random places in the glades. "I measured the areas in the glades with the highest crime rates and set up my own cameras."

Digg raised an eyebrow. "What did we say about walking into dangerous areas without back up?"

"That it might give me an opportunity to find the angel?" Felicity suggested. Digg's expression showed his exasperation at her antics.

"So, what are these cameras going to do, that the city's cameras can't?" Digg asked.

"They're more advanced than the ones the city uses, which means I can hack them and slow down the playback time." She turned and grinned at Digg. "I tried it with the city cams, but the quality degraded when I tried to slow it down." She tapped the screen. "These won't!"

Digg gave her shoulder a squeeze. "I don't say this enough, but you're a genius." Felicity blushed. "So now we wait?"

Felicity nodded. "Now we wait."

* * *

Clark was on his lunch break, staring down at the phone in his hand. He'd gotten work at a construction company which was helping rebuild the glades. The mystery benefactor of the project wanted to rebuild a safe and modern building to replace the one which had been destroyed.

Focusing on the phone, he pulled the slip of paper with Felicity's number on it out of his pocket. He'd been carrying it around for the last week. Intermittently he'd pull it out and look at it, wondering if he should dial. Each time he talked himself out of it. Maybe he should destroy the paper, but it wouldn't make a difference. He'd looked at it so many times he had the number memorized.

"What you got there, Morris?" It took him a few seconds to remember that it was the fake name he'd given the construction site. The foreman looked over his shoulder at the paper. "Ah, some girl's number? Guy like you must have women throwing themselves at you. She hot?"

"Um." Clark frowned. He thought of Felicity's smile, the fire in her eyes when she'd told off that reporter who'd wanted to exploit the death and suffering of the glades. He thought of the determination he'd seen in her when she'd heard the baby beneath the rubble. The way she babbled when she got nervous. "She's…definitely something else." He finally admitted. The other man grunted.

"You gonna call her?" he asked.

"I don't know." Clark said, thinking about the fact that she was looking for him…the part of him that saved the city, at least. "It's complicated."

"You dog." The foreman smacked his back. Clark barely felt it, but he moved slightly forward as if he had. "Just text her; that way she stays interested, but knows you're not serious about her." Clark looked back at the number. A text might be a better idea than a call. Taking a deep breath he punched the number in, then sent a text.

Hi, it's Clark. I was wondering if you wanted to run into each other on purpose sometime?

He looked at the phone, willing her to answer. Nothing. Well, he resolved, she was probably busy. Standing, he put the phone into his pocket and picked up his equipment. This foundation wasn't going to lay itself.

* * *

The department meeting was mostly a formality. Luthor wanted to test the water and see which o his employees were up to standard. Felicity sat nervously, listening to the others talking around her. She'd gotten quite a few raised eyebrows when she'd waked in; most of the people didn't believe she belonged there. Mostly, the heads were busy talking about their departments and paying Luthor ridiculous compliments which were clearly only meant to curry favor with him. He sat at the head of the table, not saying a word; simply drinking in the atmosphere. Felicity couldn't help but feel apprehensive. From what she knew of Luthor, he didn't seem to be the type of person who'd normally tolerate the level of sucking up the other heads were doing.

There is one final thing I would like to discuss." Luthor said, seeping his gaze along the table. The others grew silent and waited for him to speak "Charity outreach."

"Charity?" One of the department heads asked. Luthor nodded.

"Can anyone tell me why Wayne Enterprises is one of the most successful companies in the world?" Luthor asked, looking at his nails. "Anyone." He looked up, smiling. But his eyes were hard, cold.

"Because Wayne's got some very good people cleaning up after him?" The head of Accounting, a large man with a receding hair line snorted. Felicity looked at him in disgust. He'd been leering at her the entire meeting.

"True." Luthor said, slowly, with disdain. "But it's more than that. Wayne Enterprises does the highest amount of philanthropic work in the country; more than most corporations combined."

"That's because Wayne isn't a very good business man." Accounting snorted and most of the department heads nodded their agreement. Luthor locked eyes with Felicity.

"I believe Ms. Smoak can explain it to those of you incapable of critical thinking." He said icily. Everyone froze. Felicity shifted as the entire room turned to look at her. "Ms. Smoak?" Luthor prompted.

"Well." Felicity said, picking up her pen and nervously tapping it on the table. "People trust Wayne Enterprises. They can see the good they're doing and they invest knowing that their money is being well spent."

"Exactly." Luthor said. "Now, why do people trust in Lex Corp?"

He looked around the table again.

"Because of your leadership?" Accounting suggested. Luthor glared at him. Felicity bit her lip. Luthor seemed to be the type of man who didn't appreciate false sincerity and people attempting to butter him up. His eyes locked with hers.

"Ms. Smoak." He said, it wasn't a request.

"Lex Corp helps provide weaponry and equipment to the military." Felicity said, remembering what Digg had told her. "People want to make sure our troops are safe and Lex Corp products have the reputation of being the best."

The corner of Luthor's mouth twitched upwards slightly.

"And why?" He addressed the rest of the room. "Do people trust Queen Consolidated?" This time his question was met with silence. Felicity looked at the table in front of her, hoping he wouldn't call on her again. Accounting was glaring at her and it was almost as bad as when he'd been leering.

"The answer is they don't." Luthor snapped. "Because the only thing this company has done for people is create a machine responsible for the death of over 500 people." He paused daring someone to contradict him. "and meeting all of you today, I see how this was possible. You're all lazy, selfish, and unable to correctly run a business." He stood, putting his hands on the conference table and leaning forward. "In order to regain the people's trust this company has to launch a serious public relations campaign." He gave them all a crooked smile, which had even the most senior members of the company shivering. "Which is why, effective immediately, all of you will be taking a 50% pay cut."

There was an outcry of anger from most of the people in the room.

"And." Luthor continued as though there had been no interruption. "Each department is going to be in charge of implementing some form of charity work to help bolster the company's image. Once the stock prices rise to what I deem acceptable levels, we can discuss reestablishing your salaries."

"You can't do this." Accounting said standing. Luthor gave him an amused look and sat back in his chair, leaning back; completely at ease.

"I suppose it will be difficult for you to maintain the lifestyle that both your wife and mistress have become accustomed to." He said. "And I would appreciate it if you didn't ogle my female employees. Unlike you, Ms. Smoak is here because she is actually capable of performing the tasks in her job description."

Accounting blanched, there were veins jumping in his neck as he sputtered angrily. Luthor looked at him, amused. "It looks like you'll have to choose." He said, dismissively. "I personally would suggest your wife because that pre-nup is iron clad."

"We won't stand for this." Accounting growled.

"The door is right there." Luthor motioned towards it. "I'm sure the job market is overflowing with job opportunities for people who allowed a killing machine to be created under their watch."

"Malcom Merlyn." The head of Legal began.

"Is dead." Luthor cut him off. "And the fact that he seemed to have so much pull in this company is disturbing." He looked at them in disgust. "You were all so busy lining your pockets that you didn't stop to supervise what was happening in your own departments. That level of incompetence will no longer be tolerated." He fixed them with one final glare. "You may go."

There was a flurry of noise as everyone attempted to be the first to leave. Felicity was about to follow when Mercy Graves blocked her path.

"Mr. Luthor would like to talk to you." She motioned for Felicity to follow her.

"Getting a sense of Déjà vu." Felicity muttered as she followed Mercy to the executive elevator. Luthor was waiting for them.

"Ms. Smoak." He said, smiling when she stepped on.

"Mr. Luthor." She said.

"I hope you weren't put off by that." He said. "I've been told my CEO persona is…abrasive."

"That's…one way of putting it." Felicity said, smiling nervously.

"I also apologize about the pay cut." He continued. "I have to hold everyone to the same standard and it would not do to play favorites."

"It's okay, even with the cut it's still more than I made in IT." Felicity shrugged. "It's good PR for the company. In fact, if you used the money to fund a rebuild the glades charity it…" she trailed off. "Not that I'm in any position to give you business advice." She added. Luthor looked at her with interest. Felicity turned away from him and focused on the floor numbers…which were going down. "Aren't…we going to your office? Which is on the top floor?"

"No." Luthor said firmly. "I am abducting you."

Felicity turned to look at him in horror. Glancing around the elevator she tried to calculate how well the self-defense lessons Digg had given her would hold up against Luthor, his body guard, and Mercy. She was doomed.

"It was a joke, Ms. Smoak." Luthor seemed amused. "Do you really think I'm that type of monster?"

Felicity tilted her head and examined him. What did she really know about Luthor? She knew what the tabloids said about him; he was single, a smart businessman, and a cut throat competitor. But all these things seemed to be part of a carefully crafted persona…just like Oliver's post island playboy act. She squashed the biting pain that she associated with Oliver running out on her and Digg. "Honestly, Mr. Luthor, I don't think I know you well enough to make a determination one way or the other."

Luthor gave her an appraising look. "There are few people in this word who'd speak to me with that much candor." He said.

"Probably because you're pretty scary." Felicity said. Luthor let out a surprised laugh.

"I must say, you're a refreshing change." He said. The elevator stopped at the garage. Luthor's car was waiting for them and so was Digg… He was standing next to the car, holding open the door.

"May I introduce Sergeant John Diggle." Luthor said. "The newest addition to my personal security team."

"We've met." Felicity said. "Hi Digg."

"Felicity." He said, giving her a small nod. Felicity felt herself relax; if Digg was there then there was nothing to worry about. Luthor held out his hand.

"Shall we?"

Felicity glanced again at Digg who gave her a slight nod, then she walked into the car, ignoring Luthor's outstretched hand. He twitched slightly, then stepped into the car after her.

"Where are we going?" She asked. He gave her a tight smile.

"I've got a special project for you." He said.

* * *

It didn't escape Lex's notice that Felicity had deferred to the former sergeant's judgment, not his. She didn't trust him, which was to be expected; she was too deliciously intelligent to not be cautious. He could wait. Trust was something that needed to be earned and he knew he could convince her to place hers in his.

"I had your assistant clear your schedule for the rest of the day." Lex continued.

"What is this project, exactly?" She asked.

"I'm having Queen Consolidated fund the rebuilding of a school destroyed by the earthquake." Luthor said. "We're going to the construction site."

Her eyes widened. She approved of the idea; good. He'd counted on her compassion being something he could manipulate. He had no use for charity work outside of the maintaining of his reputation. Though he despised Wayne, there was no denying the popularity that his philanthropy bought him. Even Felicity had been starry eyed when she'd mentioned the other billionaire earlier.

"What does this have to do with me?" Felicity asked. "Mr. Luthor, sir." She added nervously.

"I'll explain once we get there." He said, allowing himself a moment to enjoy her use of the word sir.

Her phone buzzed loudly with the arrival of an incoming text message snapping him back into the present.

"Sorry." She murmured.

"Please." Luthor said. "Be my guest." He frowned. It was bizarre for him to lose control. He'd have to be more cautious around her in the future.

She pulled out her phone and opened the message. Whatever it was made her smile broadly and cover her mouth to suppress a giggle. Her fingers danced over her phone, but she decided against replying. Putting it away, she cleared her throat nervously tucking her hair behind her ear.

The car pulled up outside the construction site. Lex got out and was about to offer his hand to Felicity but she got out on her own. He straightened his suit jacket and looked around at the site. The foreman recognized him and rushed over.

"Mr. Luthor. We weren't expecting you here so soon."

"I want to have a look at the blueprints and I'm going to need hard hats for Ms. Smoak and myself."

The man nodded and whistled loudly. Quickly everyone stopped their work. Lex nodded his approval. Taking the hard hats offered him by one of the construction workers he handed one to Felicity and gingerly put one on his own head. He'd have to thoroughly scrub his head that night, but this was part of the show he was putting on for her.

"I still don't get what I'm doing here." She said. Lex held out the blue prints and motioned for her to follow. They made their way through the sight. Luthor could feel the eyes of all the workers on him and he smirked slightly. Felicity had also noticed, but her reaction was more nervous; she obviously didn't like or wasn't accustomed to being the center of attention.

"You are currently standing in what is going to be the school's new technology lab." Luthor said, holding out the plan so Felicity could see. "I'm updating QC's servers and donating the old ones to this school so the children can learn how to operate technology." Felicity's eyes widened.

"That's…" she smiled. "These kids probably don't have the opportunity to get a good education in science; especially not coding."

"Which is where you come in." Lex said. "I was serious about each department doing outreach. This can be yours."

Felicity frowned. "I thought each department was going to come up with their own ideas? Doesn't you giving me this project count as favoritism?"

Lex smiled. "Unlike the rest of the staff, you are not at fault for this disaster." He motioned around him at the rubble. "And it's not favoritism. That system overhaul was going to happen. I'm just going to need to consult with you on the best way to carry it out." He was deferring to her, giving her the illusion of authority and power while in actuality retaining it for himself. She looked back at the plans.

"This is a great idea." She said, giving him a look of guarded admiration. Lex felt a smug sense of satisfaction. Then he looked past her at the construction workers who were watching the two of them. One of them in particular stuck out. He was tall with dark hair and bright blue eyes; the type of bumbling buffoon that most women would swoon over. He didn't seem to be intimidated by Lex's presence, which didn't do much for Lex's esteem of the other man's intelligence…instead he was looking straight at Felicity. And there was recognition in his eyes.

Felicity was walking towards the side of the unfinished foundation, muttering to herself about how the room design would correspond to the servers and how many sockets and air conditioning units would be needed. She was looking at the plan and, coincidently, she was moving closer to the man in question. Lex frowned; she seemed so wrapped up in her assessment of the blue print that she didn't seem to notice anything around her. The dark haired man seemed to notice this as well and was looking at her with an affectionate amused smile. Before Lex could try and decipher what it could mean, there was loud crashing noise. A beam had gotten loose from the scaffolding above Felicity's head and was plummeting straight for her.

"FELICITY." He moved forward, though the rational part of his brain told him he wouldn't get there in time. No one would.


	8. Chapter 8

"The boss is here." One of the other work men said.

"The boss?" Clark asked.

"Lex Luthor." The man replied. "And you should see the eye candy he brought." There was a whistle from the foreman and everyone stopped what they were doing. Clark looked towards the front of the construction site and sure enough the Metropolis socialite and businessman was handing a hard hat to…Felicity.

The man next to him let out a low whistle. "Look at that." Clark glared at him. "What?" the man shrugged. "Luthor probably brought her here to pretend that he's a tough manly man so she'll open her legs for him."

"Have some respect." Clark growled. Using his super hearing he listened in on their conversation. Felicity was apparently going to head some community outreach program which would donate computers to this school. Clark frowned, he'd known Luthor had taken over Queen Consolidated; it had been front page news everywhere, but he seemed overly familiar with Felicity. Did they know each other? Clark moved closer to the part of the site where they were standing and noted how excited Felicity seemed to be about this idea. She had taken the blueprint and was eagerly making plans for what needed to be done with the room when the construction would be over. He couldn't help smiling. She was so wrapped up in her imagination, that she had lost all touch with her surroundings. Luthor was watching her as well, though his expression was hungry; possessive. Clark didn't like it, he'd read enough about Luthor to know that he was the type of man who expected to get his way, and it appeared that he was setting his sights on Felicity.

Then Clark heard something wrong. Looking up he saw that one of the metal beams on the scaffolding was loose. The rope binding the stack was cracking and one of them was dangerously close to falling and Felicity was walking right beneath it. He had a flash back to when he was a child and a school bus had fallen into a river. He'd dived in and dragged it out, but in the process had revealed his abilities to some of his classmates.

"What was I supposed to do?" He'd asked his father later. "Let them die?"

His father had shifted uncomfortably before replying "Maybe." Jonathan Kent had cautioned him against using his powers…even when it could help save someone. He'd believed the risk of being revealed outweighed the potential good Clark could do. The beam swayed dangerously. He had seconds to decide. Either pull Felicity out of the way and risk exposing himself…or do nothing. He'd be safe, but he'd have Felicity's blood on his hands. He bit his lip; no one could survive that beam falling on their head. The rope snapped and the beam broke loose, hitting the side of the scaffolding with a loud crash before beginning to fall. Time seemed to slow.

"FELICITY" Luthor shouted. She glanced up from the paper and in confusion, locked eyes with Clark. Her mouth opened slightly as if she were calling to him and he knew; there was no choice. He dove and, gathering her in his arms, pulled her out of the way. They crashed to the ground with him on his back and Felicity pressed against his chest.

"Clark?" She asked. Her glasses were askew, her hair wind swept, and her hard hat had fallen to the ground.

"We need to stop meeting like this." He said. Felicity blushed.

"I don't think we've ever met like this before." She said. Then Luthor rushed over to them.

"Felicity, are you alright?" He asked, trying to pull her off. Clark wanted to keep holding her, but he'd drawn enough attention to himself. He let her go and watched as Lex Luthor helped her to her feet. He stood.

"I'm fine." She said, brushing herself off. "I really need to pay attention to where I'm going." Clark couldn't help but agree; it was the second time he'd saved her. She turned to look at him. "I don't know how I can ever thank you."

Clark flushed in embarrassment as Luthor turned to look at him. Ignoring the business man he smiled at Felicity. "It's nothing."

"It's not nothing." Luthor said, "I was worried that no one could get to her on time." He frowned. "How did you do that, exactly?"

"Adrenaline?" Clark suggested. Luthor's eyes narrowed suspiciously, but fortunately for Clark Felicity's friend chose that moment to jog over and Luthor turned to focus on him.

"Felicity, are you okay?" He asked, checking her over for injuries. Felicity nodded. The other man let out a sigh of relief and pulled her into a hug. Then he looked at Clark. "Sergeant John Diggle." He said, holding out his hand. "Felicity's like a sister to me and I can't tell you how much it means that you saved her."

Clark took his hand and shook it. He was about to give John his name when he realized that he couldn't do it without compromising his identity. He'd given the site a fake name and he didn't want to lie to Felicity. Fortunately Felicity just rolled her eyes.

"I see you're still going for the whole tall, dark and mysterious thing." She said.

"It's working, isn't it?" Clark said. Luthor cleared his throat, unhappy at being ignored. Felicity blushed.

"Mr. Luthor, I think I've seen enough here." She said, holding up the blueprint. "If I can get a copy of these, I can go over them later and email you my suggestions."

Luthor appeared taken aback by being ordered around, but nodded. "In fact, I think you should take the rest of the day off." He glared at the foreman. "I need to discuss the security of this job site." He pulled the man aside and began to berate him. Clark took the opportunity to try and move back, but Felicity put a hand on his arm and held him in place.

"In case you were wondering." She said. "I would like to run into each other on purpose sometime." She straightened her glasses and fiddled with her dress. "Without falling construction equipment." She added. Clark smiled.

"I'd like that too." He said.

"So, how about dinner, tomorrow night?" she asked. "I'll meet you at the Big Belly where we ate after volunteering."

Clark nodded, his throat dry. "Sounds…um sounds great." Felicity grinned.

"I'll see you then," she said, "maybe I'll get a last name."

He smiled down at her. She was shaking slightly from the shock of the near death experience. Her heart was hammering out of her chest and her eyes were wide and sparkling. She was beautiful. He cleared his throat. "As long as I get yours."

"Smoak." She said. "Felicity Smoak." She moved over and, standing on tiptoe, she gave him a kiss on the cheek. Smiling one last time, she turned and walked towards the car with Sergeant Diggle. Luthor, who was still threatening the foreman, watched her go and shot an angry look at Clark. Clark turned away. Luthor could glare all he wanted; Felicity wasn't having dinner with him tomorrow night.

* * *

"Are you sure you're alright?" Luthor asked when he slid into the car seat next to Felicity. She nodded, her stomach full of butterflies. She wasn't about to admit to Luthor that this particular near death experience had been nothing compared the bomb collar and the mob casino. In fact she hadn't exactly realized what had happened until Clark was under her. Clark…who she'd asked on a date…well she hoped it was a date; she'd never officially called it a date. Either way he'd said yes.

"I'm just pumped for this project." She said.

"Even with construction materials falling on your head?" Luthor asked. Felicity shrugged.

"It takes a lot to faze me." She said simply. "Don't be too hard on the workers, it was an accident."

Luthor frowned. "If they had been better organized it wouldn't have happened. I can't tolerate that type of inattentiveness."

"Sometimes it's possible to do everything right and still not come out on top." Felicity said. Luthor raised an eyebrow, clearly skeptical. "I'm trying to say that there are sometimes unexplainable variables that our out of our control."

Luthor's frown deepened. "Well, then I guess we are fortunate that your friend managed to be fast enough to save you."

"He's not my…" Felicity flushed. "He's more of an acquaintance than a friend." She said. Luthor's comment jolted something about Clark. She'd seen him before he'd pulled her out of the way. It was weird, but she'd thought he was far from her to save her. Shaking herself, she bit her lip and stared out the window.

"Digg, can you take us back to QC. I have some stuff in my office I need to pick up." She said.

"Sure, Felicity." Digg said.

* * *

Lex was seething. How could something so clumsy, foolish and uncontrollable have happened? He should have foreseen it; a construction site was a dangerous place after all. Or he should have played it to his advantage by staging an accident to swoop in and save her. No instead Mr. Muscles had been the one to rescue her. The two knew each other; that much was evident from their interactions. He fought to compose himself. He was Lex Luthor; the idea that a lowly construction worker was competition for him was laughable. A woman like Felicity had nothing in common with that sort of rabble. He gave her a small smile as the car pulled into the Queen Consolidated garage. She got out of the car and left with Diggle, whispering intently. Pausing in front of the elevators, she turned and gave him a smile. "I'll see you soon, Mr. Luthor." He looked down at her and gave her a smile.

"Lex, Ms. Smoak." He corrected. "I think almost getting construction equipment dropped on your head qualifies you to use my first name." He paused. "Are you busy for lunch?" Why was he asking? She could refuse a request. In fact if her regretful expression was any indication she was going to refuse him.

"I…I actually have a ton of paperwork to do because of the promotion." She said. He didn't allow his face to show his disappointment; that's what came of asking. "Thanks for the offer, Mr. Lu…Lex." She corrected when he gave her an amused smile. She ducked into the elevator. Diggle stood next to him. Lex looked over at him.

"I won't be needing your services until I leave for the day." Lex said while getting into the executive elevator alone. He made his way back up to his office, pondering his reaction to Felicity's near accident. Saving her had clearly been a lost cause, yet he'd moved forward anyway. He'd been willing to risk his life on an uncertainty. That unsettled him. He bit his lip and looked out at the city. Somewhere hiding in this city was the means to answer his questions; the means to give him enough power to crush any fools who would oppose him. Fools like that darned construction worker who thought that they had a right to what was his. Because Felicity Smoak was his, he'd wanted her working for him and her turning down his employment offer after she graduated MIT had stung. He didn't accept rejection and from that day he'd decided he'd do whatever it took to possess her. The fact that the pattern of mysterious events had led him to Starling was fortuitous because it mean he could have it all; the woman and the power.


	9. Chapter 9

Clark fidgeted nervously. He was sitting in one of the booths at the Big Belly Burger waiting for Felicity. She'd texted him earlier to say she'd meet him at 7:30 and it was currently 7:21. He shifted, focusing on his fingers. His super hearing amplified the second hand on the clock making each second sound like a hammer strike. He shouldn't have worn a tie, he thought as he tugged at it. It was ridiculous, but the small piece of cloth felt as though it was strangling him.

Then he heard her. She was about a block away, walking toward the restaurant. He debated before using his x ray vision to look through the walls. There she was, walking and muttering a pep talk. Clark bit back a smile and looked away concentrating on shutting out her words. Clearly he wasn't the only nervous one and it would be unfair of him to use his abilities to his advantage. A few minutes later she pushed open the door and walked in.

"Hi." She said, smiling shyly.

"Hi." He said, standing. They stood there, looking at each other. Clark cleared his throat.

"We should-"

"Yeah-"

They looked at each other before saying simultaneously. "You first."

"Okay." Felicity giggled. "Let's start over. Hi, it's good to see you, Mr….what was your name again?" Clark grinned at her adorable attempt to trick him into revealing his last name.

"Kent." He said, giving in. "Clark Kent."

"Huh." Felicity tilted her head. "I did not think that would work. Well, Mr. Kent, how about we start this date….dinner." She squeaked quickly. "I meant dinner. Not date. I didn't think this was a date. Unless you thought this was a date. Oh god."

Clark laughed as she sat down and covered her face. "I don't really do this much so you'll have to tell me what to call it." He sat across from her.

"So…" Felicity tilted her head. "I guess I should start by saying thank you for not letting me turn into a pancake."

"You're welcome." Clark smiled. "I'm glad I was able to get to you in time. I don't think you'd make a nice pancake."

Felicity blushed. They sat in silence, making eye contact every few seconds and turning away quickly, Felicity blushing and Clark's ears turning red. "This is awkward." She finally said.

"Really?" Clark asked. "I thought silences and avoiding eye contact were standard."

"Well, maybe on your planet," Felicity said, "but here we usually talk." She smiled. Clark froze.

"My…planet?" he asked. Felicity gaped.

"Oh, I'm sorry. It was my terrible idea of a joke. I meant that you …you said that you didn't know much about how this dating thing worked and I well…it sounded a lot funnier in my head than out loud. I'm sorry if I offended you. Though it's not as if you really are an alien, although that would be super cool, and highly unlikely. I mean…what are the odds that people from another planet look exactly like us. In Star Trek they sort of do, but in Doctor Who they look really different, though the Doctor's human looking and there's a lot of debate on whether that's a conscious choice or whether humans look like Gallifreyans since technically they came first….please stop me." She bit her lip, looking horribly embarrassed. Clark relaxed; her ramble had put him at ease, after all, how could she possible know where he came from when he didn't know it himself?

"Well, on my planet the more awkward a person is around you, the more they like you." He supplied, attempting to ease her anxiety by playing along with her joke. "You like sci-fi?"

Felicity nodded. "I wanted to be an astronaut…but then my mom wouldn't let me go to space camp…and I got glasses." She tapped her frames. "Can't be an astronaut if you're near sighted." She blushed and mumbled. "You must think I'm a total dork."

"When I was little, I was always fascinated by the stars." Clark said. "There wasn't a lot of light pollution where I'm from so you could really see the sky. I had a telescope in the barn and I'd be out there most nights watching the stars and planets move." He didn't add that he'd done it wondering if he could see where he was from, hoping the sky would give him the answers to where his place in the universe was. "So, I'm as much of a dork as you." He shifted slightly. "Though I've never watched Doctor Who before." He grinned as Felicity's eyes lit up.

"I've got every season. You could come over and watch them some time." She flushed. "That is if-"

"I'd like that." Clark said quickly, sensing she was about to enter one of her rambles and wanted to spare her from being embarrassed. Felicity gave him a grateful look. They ordered and the rest of the meal passed comfortably, both of them swapping stories about their childhoods. Felicity telling him about the time she'd accidentally caused her elementary school to be evacuated because the volcano she'd created had been a little too realistic (Lava doesn't only flow over the sides, I thought it would be better if it had some really small pieces blast off and some smoke too). Clark told her about the time he'd accidentally broken the bleachers covering a football game for his high school newspaper (I tripped and the wood was rotten. It broke along with half the stands…the game had to be rescheduled and instead of writing the article, I became the article). It was easy to talk to her, even if he had to amend some of the details to conceal his secret. She made him laugh. For the first time in a long time, Clark allowed himself to relax.

* * *

Lex was annoyed. Nothing was going as planned. He'd spent the whole day hoping to catch the mystery "angel" in action, but the city was being obnoxiously well behaved. In fact, crime had dropped. He drummed his fingers on the desk in the penthouse he'd bought, glaring at the screens, and the police scanner; then he shut them off. Glancing across his desk, he caught sight of a stack of papers Felicity had sent his office yesterday. She'd been sent home after the incident at the worksite, but she'd still gone above and beyond to finish her assigned task. He smirked slightly. She'd even used multi-colored post-its to highlight things she found important. He wondered what she was up to. He looked at the screens; he shouldn't. There were more important things he should be focusing on, but he found he couldn't help himself. He ran facial recognition to find where she was. If she was outside, he'd find her.

It took a few minutes, but there she was; coming out of a fast food restaurant. She was smiling. Lex felt a thrill run through him…until she turned around and looked at someone behind her. And then he walked out; the construction worker who'd saved her. Lex glared at them his fists clenching as he watched the two of them walking together and talking. This wasn't an accidental encounter; her over familiarity with him and her choice of outfit told him as much. This was a date. Lex grabbed a paperweight and hurled it at the screen where Felicity was grinning up at the man, a blush coloring her cheeks as he handed her his jacket. He didn't deserve her; she was meant for Lex and Lex was going to make damn sure that by the time he was done with them, they both knew it.


	10. Chapter 10

"How was the date?" Digg asked as Felicity walked into the lair.

"It wasn't a date, it was a thank you for saving my life dinner.' Felicity said. Digg crossed his arms and gave her a look of disbelief. "Alright…it was totally a date." She sat down in her computer chair, unable to fight the grin that was forming. "It was nice, you know? Made me feel normal."

Digg sat next to her. "Normal?"

"Yeah." Felicity shrugged. "Going out, meeting someone, connecting…" She trailed off and looked around the lair. Digg frowned.

"Nu uh. I know that look."

"What look?" Felicity asked.

"The 'I can't do this and be in a relationship' look." Digg said. Felicity didn't ask where he'd seen it before. They both knew who he was talking about. "You don't deserve to be trapped here. This doesn't have to be your fight, and if balancing your life at work, your private life and your life down here gets to be too much…you can always walk away."

"I don't want to, John." Felicity murmured. "I like helping people."

Digg nodded. "Well, if this Clark guy is really as amazing as you seem to think he is-"

"What makes you say that?' Felicity interrupted.

Digg shrugged. "Just that I've never seen you this happy."

Felicity felt heat rising to her face and she quickly turned to the screens. "So, how's the city looking tonight?"

"Quiet." Digg said. "I think our mystery helper has scared the criminal underground into behaving."

* * *

Felicity was working in her shiny new office on Monday, with music on. She had her back to the door and was humming along when someone cleared their throat. She whirled around in her chair, letting out a loud squeak of surprise, and dropping the tablet she was holding. "That was new." She mumbled, then she looked up and paled.

"Mr. Luthor." She stood. "I…um." She quickly turned off the music, Adele's voice cut short in the middle of a song. "I didn't know you'd be coming here today. I was just looking over the reports from my underlings. I mean the people that report to me in my department, who I jokingly refer to as my underlings. Not that I'm some kind of despotic dictator, I just thought it was funny and I should not have said it out loud." She bent down and grabbed the tablet.

Luthor sat across from her. "I didn't mean to startle you; your assistant wasn't at his desk. He frowned. "Should I have him fired?"

"No, you shouldn't." Felicity said quickly. "I sent him to lunch because I figured he might want some sunshine."

"Then why are you inside?" Luthor asked.

Felicity looked at the ruins of her tablet. "I was actually going to contact you about that. I've been getting several emails from other people in the department who all say that there's been an increased amount of attempted breaches."

"What?" Luthor's previously mild expression darkened.

"I've been monitoring our servers and they're right. I've had to block about 10 breaches since this morning." Felicity looked down at her tablet. "and I think I know why."

Luthor leaned back and indicated that she should go on. Felicity bit her lip. "There's this cyber forum where a bunch of people have been posting anti-QC stuff, which is understandable since we built the bomb that leveled a huge portion of the city. And lately they've decided to attack us directly because of a lack of justice for victims of the quake."

Luthor arched an eyebrow. "I was under the impression that the scientists responsible had all been killed when Merlyn came to collect his device." Felicity noted how cold and detached his words were.

"Yeah, but there are a lot of angry and grieving people." She said. "And I understand why. NOT." She added quickly, seeing a flash of anger enter Luthor's eyes. "That I agree that they should have tried to hack us, but…I've been down the quake site and part of me wonders if…if we did everything we could to stop the destruction."

Luthor's expression shifted to one of confusion. "Do you blame yourself?"

"It's kinda hard not to." Felicity mumbled.

"Felicity." Luthor said, his voice full of reassurance and slight amusement at her empathy. "There is nothing you could have done to prevent this tragedy." Felicity nodded and looked away. If only he knew how wrong he was. It had been nagging at the back of her mind that she hadn't even considered the possibility of a backup device. If she had, she could have found it and disarmed it on time. She snapped back to reality when Luthor cleared his throat. "You were talking about the hackers?"

"Hackers, right." She gave herself a mental shake. "I was going to ask for permission to set up an extra security level to our firewall; a Trojan horse that would attach itself to any infiltrator and send a virus to their ip address."

Luthor looked impressed. "Permission granted." He tilted his head. "I never realized how much of a dark side you had, Felicity."

"It's…" She looked down at her ruined tablet. "It'll take me a while."

Luthor leaned forward and picked up the tablet. "I'll have another one sent to you by the end of the day."

Felicity nervously tucked her hair behind her ears. "I am just blowing through your tablet budget." She muttered.

Luthor shook his head, amused. "I'm good for it; believe me." He fixed her with an intense look.

"So…" Felicity said, looking away. "Were you just in the neighborhood?"

"No." Luthor leaned back. "I actually have to go to Metropolis in 5 days. There's been a lot of discussion surrounding my decision to buy this company and my presence at Lex Corps will calm investors." He paused. "In addition, I was hoping to present your outreach project as a show of what the new Queen Consolidated is capable of."

"Oh." Felicity said. "That sounds like a good idea."

'Felicity." Luthor said, a slight smirk playing on his lips. "I'm trying to say that I would like you to join me in Metropolis so that you can present your ideas for the school."

Felicity gaped at him.

"What?" She said, abruptly. "I mean are you sure?"

Luthor's face remained the same. "Perfectly."

"It's just, I haven't really given a pitch to…I don't know if I'm the right person because it was really your idea."

Luthor nodded. "It began as my idea, but you took it and truly made it your own. I have faith in your abilities."

"I…can I have a few days to consider it?" Felicity asked. Luthor tensed slightly and Felicity realized that she'd just contradicted a request from her boss, who also happened to be one of the most powerful people in the world. The next second Luthor gave her a small smile and nodded.

"I don't see why not. As I said, I'm leaving in 5 days." He stood and began leaving the office.

"Thank you." Felicity said, "Mr. Luthor."

He turned and shot her a piercing look, his mouth ticked upwards, "I believe I have asked you to call me Lex." Then he left.

* * *

"You seem distracted."

Clark's voice snapped her back into focus. She blinked and looked over at him. They were in her apartment preparing for a Doctor Who marathon.

"What makes you say that?" Felicity asked.

Clark gave her a small smile. "It's just that you've been staring at the open cabinet for a good 2 minutes." He hesitated, before reaching around her and grabbing two plates. "Pizza's getting cold." He said. "Something on your mind?"

Felicity nodded, closing the cabinet. "It's a work thing." She sighed. "It's…complicated." She sat on the couch and took the plate Clark handed her, grabbing a slice of pizza. Clark didn't press; a fact for which she was grateful. Taking a few bites, she considered whether or not she should tell him. "It's my boss." She finally admitted. "QC was bought by Lex Corp and the last few weeks, Lex Luthor's been here personally, overseeing the transition."

Clark nodded.

"Which you knew because you met him at the construction site." Felicity muttered, closing her eyes. "Anyways, he promoted me to head of IT and…I don't know. He's been nothing but nice to me, but at the same time it feels as though he has some alternative agenda."

"Has he said something or tried anything?" Clark asked. Felicity noted that he was gripping the plate a little tighter. He glanced down at it and put it on the table.

"No." She said. "I mean… he keeps trying to get me to call him Lex." She shuddered. "Then yesterday he asked me to go to Metropolis with him to present a special project the IT department is working on to the Lex Corps board of investors."

"That sounds like an amazing opportunity." Clark pointed out.

"It is…" Felicity said. "But something isn't right. My gut is telling me to stay the hell away from him."

"Well then, I don't think you should discount your instincts." Clark said. "There might be a way to do both."

"What?"

"Go to Metropolis and stay the hell away from him." Clark said. "Make your own travel plans separately from his. Choose your own hotel, airline ticket…"

"That way I won't be caught alone with him." Felicity grinned. "And I can still give the presentation to the board." She tilted her head. "I'll have to make sure I make the plans before I tell him I'm going. That way he can't try and get me to take his private jet with him." She got up and began rummaging through her DVDs to get out the Doctor Who set.

Clark nodded. "If you want, I can come with you…" He blushed as Felicity looked at him. "It's just…there's been an issue with a broken water main at the construction site and Metropolis isn't too far from Smallville." He shrugged. "It's been a while since I've visited my mom."

"Smallville…" Felicity smiled. Clark was a secretive person and every detail she learned about him, made her interested in finding out more. "Another piece towards solving the puzzle that is Clark Kent."

"Not really a puzzle." Clark mumbled. "Just a simple country boy from Kansas who moved from home to see more of this planet." He fiddled with the pizza in front of him. "and I get it if you say no. I mean you just said that your boss was being overbearing and it made you nervous and now I'm doing the same thing."

Felicity shook her head. "It's not the same thing." She murmured. "Luthor's using his position as my boss to try and manipulate me. There's an imbalance of power. You're just a friend who's trying to be nice." She noted that Clark's face fell when she said the words 'just a friend'. "I mean… right now we're friends, but we could be more, though I'm not sure 2 not exactly dates qualifies us as boyfriend and girlfriend, but I wouldn't mind being yours…your girlfriend…eventually when I get to know a bit more about you and when you get to know me a little better too. It's just right now we both just met and…" She put her face in her hands, her palms cool against her burning cheeks.

"Felicity." Clark's voice was closer and she realized he'd moved off the couch to sit next to her on the floor. "I wouldn't mind being your not exactly friend but not exactly your boyfriend either." She peeked out from between her fingers. Clark was giving her a genuine smile and he didn't seem put off or shocked by her ramble.

"Really?"

He nodded. "Now." he said, grabbing a DVD. "I know this very special woman who says this is the coolest TV show there's ever been."

"She sounds smart." Felicity murmured, lowering her hands.

"She is." Clark said. "So how many seasons does this show have?"

"31." Felicity said, grinning slightly at the way Clark's face paled. "Oh yeah, you've got a lot of catching up to do."

* * *

Lex noted the cheery confident way Felicity walked into his office. She'd asked for this meeting herself, which was surprising, but not unwelcome. He liked that she was becoming more assertive around him; it meant that she was beginning to let her guard down.

"What can I do for you, Felicity?" He gave her a pleasant smile and indicated the seat across from his desk. She sat and gave him a wide smile.

"I just wanted to tell you that I am going to be doing the presentation in Metropolis…if you still want me to."

Lex kept his expression neutral as a thrill raced through him. He hadn't thought she'd agree and yet, here she was. "I am happy to hear it." He said, slightly taken aback at the sincerity in his voice. It didn't matter; he was one step closer to having her be his. "My jet will be leaving at 10:30 from Starling City airport and-"

"Actually." Felicity said. "I was so excited that I already bought a plane ticket."

Lex's hands curled in his lap. "Really?" He said, evenly.

"Yeah." She shrugged. "Call me silly, but I've never been to Metropolis and I kinda wanted to experience it like a real tourist. So, airplane, cab, hotel; the works." She grinned. "I was just wondering if you had an itinerary for me."

"Are you sure?" Lex said, "It would be cheaper to accompany me on my jet."

"Well, I didn't know it was option." Felicity said. "And cancellation fees are super expensive."

He didn't press. He knew she'd made up her mind and pushing would make her suspicious. He smiled. "I'll have my assistant email you with the times and places of where you need to be, and thank you again for agreeing to do this."

Felicity flashed him another blinding smile and got up to leave. He watched her through the glass walls of his office, his temper rising. He hadn't gained any ground with her; she wasn't letting her guard down, if anything she was becoming even more caged.

* * *

 **AN: so I know there are 34 seasons of Doctor Who, but since this takes place after season 1 of Arrow, there would only be 31**


	11. Chapter 11

Felicity glanced nervously outside the plane window.

"Afraid of flying?" Clark asked.

"I wouldn't say I'm afraid." Felicity said. "More…apprehensive." She bit her lip and looked out the window again. Clark's warm hand enveloped hers.

"I'm right here." He said.

Felicity pouted. "For the record, I'm totally not scared…but your hand is warm."

Clark smiled and gave her fingers a slight squeeze as the plane took off.

Felicity let go of Clark's hand when the plane reached cruising altitude. "Sorry for bruising your fingers." She said, sheepishly.

Clark flexed his fingers. "It's okay; you can't do too much damage." He smiled as if enjoying an inside joke.

"Have you ever been to Metropolis?" Felicity asked. Clark nodded.

"Once for a senior fieldtrip in high school." He said. "It's a pretty amazing city…though considering it was the first time I'd been somewhere bigger than Smallville, I might be biased."

Felicity snorted. "So I guess you can be my tour guide." She joked. "Wait, you said you were visiting your mom…and I have a pretty full schedule with Luthor." She shook her head. "He's got me making the presentation to the board, then a tour of Lex Corps, and some kind of gala at the company headquarters…and an investor's party at Luthor mansion." She covered her face. "This is going to be so fun." She muttered.

Clark grimaced. "Well, if you need me, I won't be too far away." He smiled. "Just call me."

Felicity nodded.

* * *

At the airport Felicity gave Clark a hug before leaving. Getting in a cab she looked out at the city. Metropolis was so much brighter than Starling. The sun reflected off the tall glassy buildings. Felicity slowed her breathing, trying to reign in her nervousness. "Relax." She muttered. "You don't even have to deal with him until tomorrow." As if he was reading her mind, Luthor's caller id came up on her phone. She bit her lip before taking the call. "Hello?"

"Hello Felicity, I hope your flight went well?" He asked.

"Yeah, I'm just on my way to the hotel." She replied.

"Excellent. For tomorrow, just give your name to the front desk at the main Lex Corps building. They'll give you all the access you need." He hung up. Felicity felt herself relax. Maybe this visit to Metropolis wouldn't be too bad.

* * *

The presentation and the tour had gone well. Felicity had fallen in love with the Lex Corps servers. Lex watched with amusement as she gaped, open mouthed at the computer system. "Does it meet with your approval?" he asked, wanting her focus on him. She jumped slightly; obviously she had forgotten that he was even in the room. Lex's amusement soured, he didn't like being ignored, whether intentional or not.

"This…" she waved around the room. "Is amazing." She moved towards one of the main processors. "I want to touch it." she mumbled. Lex smiled.

"By all means." He said. Felicity hesitated before placing her hand on it.

"Hello beautiful." She murmured. "Mama loves you." The she flushed and cleared her throat. "Why did I say that out loud?" she groaned. Lex smiled.

"Do you wish to continue?" He motioned to the door. Felicity through one last sad look at the computers. Then she walked past him. Lex took a moment to admire her from behind before following her. "What are your lunch plans?" He asked. Felicity shifted uncomfortably.

"I was going to get some pizza, then find a dress for the gala." She said.

"Perhaps I might be of assistance." Lex suggested.

"That's really kind of you to offer, but I get into a pretty weird head space when I'm shopping." Felicity gave him a tight smile. "It's not something that other people should witness." She grinned. "Thanks for the tour and I guess I'll see you tonight."

Before Lex had a chance to offer her a ride in one of the company cars. She'd hailed a cab and opened the door. With one last wave she was driving away. He exhaled loudly. How was she still refusing him? He pulled out his phone. "Is all in place for tonight?" He barked as Mercy picked up the phone.

"Yes, Mr. Luthor." She replied.

"Good." He glared in the direction that Felicity's cab had disappeared. "I cannot tolerate anything going wrong."

* * *

Clark landed on the back lawn of the farmhouse he'd grown up in. It was comforting that no matter how crazy things got in the outside world, Smallville would remain the same. A dog burst out of the house, barking and wagging its tail. Clark knelt. "Hey, boy." He murmured scratching the dog's ears. "Where's Ma?"

"Clark?" The door opened and his mom stepped out on the back porch. "Is that you?" She grinned and held open her arms. Clark stepped into them. "Hey Ma." He murmured.

"Come in." She said, pushing him towards the door. "You must be starving; I'll make you something to eat."

"You don't have to." Clark laughed, but let Martha Kent urge him into a chair in the small kitchen.

"None of that." Martha chided. "You're looking a little thin." She began opening cabinets and the fridge, pulling out food.

Clark laughed. "I always look thin to you."

"Well that's because I don't know who's been feeding you."

"I've been taking care of myself." Clark insisted. Martha paused and looked at him.

"How long are you going to be here?" she asked. Clark bit his lip and looked at the table. Ever since his father died he hadn't been home for more than a few days, usually around the holidays or his mother's birthday.

"I've been working on a construction site and the work was put on hold for about 2 weeks because of a water mane break." He explained.

"In Starling."

Clark looked up at her in surprise. Martha smiled. "The Angel of the quakesite." She said. "I think I recognize the work of my own son."

Clark fidgeted. "I should keep going. Staying too long is dangerous."

Martha crossed her arms and looked at him thoughtfully. "What's different this time?" she asked. She knew Clark's pattern. Stay in a place for a short amount of time, doing odd jobs and helping as many people as he could, but he'd never stayed in one place for this long and he'd never allowed so much exposure.

` Clark shook his head. "How about I help you with that tracker out there? I noticed there's a value loose."

Martha sighed. "Alright." She said. "but you'll tell me eventually, you always do." Clark chuckled. He might have x-ray vision, but he had nothing on Martha Kent.

"I'm proud of you." Martha said the next day over dinner. Clark looked at his plate.

"It was a simple valve replacement." He said.

"That's not what I meant." Martha said. "I loved your father, but I always thought he was wrong about you using your abilities." She reached across and squeezed his hand. "If you want to help people, then you shouldn't be afraid of doing it." she smiled. "You're a good person, which is more than I can say about that Bat in Gotham or the Hood in Starling…where is he?"

"He disappeared after the earthquake." Clark said. He knew from the first time he'd followed Diggle to the lair, that Oliver Queen was the Hood and that Felicity had helped him. He'd originally thought of the vigilante as a ruthless killer, but the more he got to know Felicity, the more he doubted that he knew all the information. There was no way Felicity would help a murderer without a good reason. "And I thought the Bat was a myth."

Martha shook her head. "In any case, I'm proud of you."

Clark stood and piled the plates, taking them to the sink. Martha turned on the TV to watch the news.

"We're now getting reports that a hostage situation is happening at a Lex Corp gala." The reporter said. "Armed gun men entered the gala and opened fire before sealing the exits. It is unclear if there are any casualties or what the gunmen want." There was a sound of shattering ceramic and the plates Clark was holding crumbled to the ground.

"Clark?" Martha asked, looking at him in concern.

"Felicity's there." He said, and took off.

* * *

Felicity had ducked under one of the tables the second the crazy people with the guns entered the gala. "Digg is going to kill me now." She muttered, "That is if they don't kill me first." She hugged herself, trying to think. There was no back up coming so her best bet was to stay out of sight and hope not to attract attention.

"Felicity." A voice said from next to her. Felicity squeaked and, grabbing her shoe, prepared to attack the person before realizing it was Luthor.

"Mr. Luthor." She said.

"Are you alright?" He whispered. Felicity nodded.

"This isn't the first time I've been held at gunpoint." She muttered. Her eyes widened. "I mean, Starling is super dangerous and there was this casino and they thought I was counting cards." She shook her head. "Not the point."

A pair of boots stopped in front of the table. Felicity bit her lip, trying not to make any noise. Then a hand reached under and pulled her out. She couldn't hold back the scream that tore form her lips as she struggled against the gun man.

"Let her go." Luthor had jumped out and was staring down the gunman.

"Give us 4 billion dollars cash, a helicopter that can't be traced and maybe I'll think about not keeping her." The man pressed the muzzle to Felicity's throat. She'd just closed her eyes when suddenly there was a loud crashing noise and the cool metal of the gun against her neck disappeared. There was a blast of wind and suddenly she was pressed against something warm. She opened her eyes and saw that she was outside the building and that the gunmen were disarmed, sitting dazed in front of the police barricade. She barely had time to register this before she was rising; being pulled upwards by whatever…whoever was carrying her. She clung to them, because she didn't want to be dropped and die. Closing her eyes she hoped the flying would be over soon.

After a few minutes, but seemed like hours, the person crash landed.

"Sorry." A familiar voice said as they set her down. "I haven't quite figured out the whole landing thing and I'm out of practice."

Felicity jumped backwards almost tripping in an effort to get back, but the person grabbed her arms and steadied her. She opened her eyes. She was standing in a barn and in front of her, his eyes full of concern was…

"Clark?"


	12. Chapter 12

Felicity held up her hands in front of her.

"I'm not going to hurt you." Clark said.

"You just...and the...and we...flying.." she couldn't form full sentences. Clark hung his head.

"Let me explain." He said.

"You're the angel." She said. "The person who's been saving all the people in Starling."

Clark nodded nervously. Felicity stepped back and shuddered, he hands still raised. He should have left her at her hotel, he shouldn't have revealed himself to her. Now that she knew she'd think he was a freak. Anything they could have had would be destroyed. That was what came of allowing himself to hope.

"And this..." Felicity looked around her. "This is your barn."

Clark nodded. "We're in Smallville." He said. "I can take you back to Metropolis and your hotel if- " he trailed off as Felicity's eyes widened with fear.

"I think hurtling across the sky once is enough for one night." Felicity said. "How can you..." she flapped her arms. Clark grimaced.

"It's not like that. I'm not a bird." He looked at the ground. "I'm not really sure what I am." He rubbed the back of his head. "I can fly, bend steel, shoot lasers out of my eyes, see through walls, hear ..." He broke off as Felicity took a step away from him. "I'm not going to hurt you, Felicity. I'd never hurt you."

"It's just a lot to take in." Felicity murmured. "I guess you really don't need those glasses, huh?"

Clark shook his head. "People tend to ignore someone with glasses. They make me look innocuous. Help me blend in."

"Innocuous isn't a word I'd use to describe you." Felicity said. "So...was it some sort of experiment?"

Clark shook his head. Walking over to the center of the barn he knelt and brushed aside the hay. Grabbing the handle of a trap door, he pulled it up. Then he jumped down. Felicity walked over and he held out his hand. She hesitated, then slipped her hand in his. He helped her down.

"There was a giant meteor shower in Smallville about 30 years ago. This crash landed on my parents' lawn...with me inside it." Clark watched as Felicity squinted in the darkness, then her eyes widened on shock as she took in the object in front of her.

"Is that...a spaceship?" She breathed. She looked at him, her eyes were large, but not because of fear; she was staring at him in wonder. "You're an alien." She breathed. "Wait...is that offensive? Do you prefer extraterrestrial or non-Terran or.." she put her hands on her hips as Clark started laughing. "What?"

"It's just...you find out I'm from a different planet and the first thing you do is try to figure out what to call me." He laughed as relief flooded through him. She wasn't afraid. If anything, she seemed annoyed with him for thinking her reaction was funny.

"What's wrong with being polite?" She asked. Clark jumped out into the main barn. Turning he extended his arm and pulled her up.

"It's just, I've spent my whole life worried about how people would react if they knew and 'is the word alien offensive', wasn't even close to any of the outcomes I imagined."

"I'm guessing you expected something more district 9?" Felicity murmured.

Clark nodded.

"So can you fly that thing?" She pointed back towards the trapdoor.

"No." He noted with amusement how disappointed she looked. "I was just a baby when I landed here. I don't know where I'm from or who my real family was."

"I'm sorry." She murmured, looking around the barn again. "How did you know that I was in trouble?"

"The TV." Clark explained. "The news said there was a hostage situation and I knew you were there…" He looked down. "I didn't want you to get hurt."

Felicity was about to respond when the door to the barn opened and a middle aged woman came in. "Clark?" she paused and looked at Felicity, her worried expression turned to one of amusement. "Who's your friend?" she asked.

"This isn't what it looks like." Clark said.

"Oh really?" the woman grinned. "Because the gunmen who attacked the Lex Corps gala mysteriously appeared, disarmed, outside of the building and I'm assuming this is the Felicity whose name you said before jetting out." She moved forward, holding out her hand. "Martha Kent, Clark's mother."

"Felicity Smoak." Felicity said, taking the woman's hand. "And I'm sorry for barging in on your barn, though I didn't know I was going to because I didn't know about Clark's whole…" She motioned towards the trapdoor. "And this is a bit much to take in so." She took a deep breath. "and this dress is really tight and I think it's cutting off circulation to my brain." Martha put an arm around her shoulders and frowned at Clark.

"I thought I raised you better than to kidnap women and scare them out of their minds." She admonished.

"Ma." Clark protested, but Martha was leading Felicity out of the barn.

"Come on, sweetie." She murmured. "I think I have some clothes that can fit you. How about I make you nice cup of hot chocolate and then Clark can explain himself."

* * *

Thirty minutes later, Felicity was sitting on the couch, holding a mug of hot chocolate, wearing jeans, a tee shirt and a flannel shirt Martha had lent her. Clark and his mother were having a whispered argument in the kitchen.

"You scared her half to death, what were you thinking?" Martha hissed.

"She had a gun pressed against her throat." Clark said. "and I couldn't leave her there. Luthor planned it."

"What?" Felicity turned and looked at them in alarm. "What are you talking about?"

Clark looked her in the eyes before responding. "When I got to the gala, I had a glimpse of the weapons the gun men were using. There was a break-in at Wayne Enterprises about a week ago, and a bunch of weapons were stolen. The report was kept in house, but I found out because…I overheard a Wayne employee talking to someone about it over the phone at the Metropolis airport."

"How does that tie into Luthor?" Felicity asked.

"Because while the outside of those weapons were the Wayne model, the inside matched Luthor weapons. He switched the casings to implicate Wayne, but in order to get access to those weapons they had to have some level of clearance from Lex Corps."

"Why would Luthor order an attack on his own gala?" Felicity said.

"I don't know." Clark said. "What I do know is that just before he ducked under the table with you, Luthor said something over a communication device that told the lead gunman exactly where you were hiding."

Felicity shivered, her hands shaking and spilling the hot chocolate over her hands.

"You're scaring her." Martha admonished, moving closer and pulling the mug out her hands and picking up a quilt and wrapping it around her shoulders. "You're safe here." She said, looking Felicity in the eyes.

Clark knelt in front of her. "I think he wanted to implicate Wayne in the attack and…well if he saved you, then you'd be indebted to him."

Felicity's eyes widened in horror. "The construction site…do you think he…?" She gulped, remembering how close she'd been to being crushed. Clark frowned.

"I'm not sure, it was pretty sloppy. He was too far to reach you." Clark said.

Felicity bit her lip. "So that was just a freak accident." She said. "He likes control…and there were too many variables."

Clark nodded. "You were too far away for anyone to get to you on time."

"Except for you." Felicity said. "Because of your…powers." She bit her lip. "Can I just say how glad I am that we bumped into each other at the quakesite?"

Clark grimaced. "We almost didn't." He admitted. Felicity's eyes widened. "I know about…your headquarters under the club. I followed your friend, Sergeant Diggle? back there one night when I saw him turn up at one of the crimes I stopped before the police got there." He looked at his hands. "I was worried you'd find out about my secret."

Felicity closed her eyes. "I sort of…worked with the Hood." She winced at the name; she'd never liked Oliver's codename. Martha sucked in a breath. "He's actually not a bad person, even though he's…done some bad things, I agreed to help him and…well he disappeared after the earthquake." She hung her head. "He lost someone he cared about and it messed him up. We've been trying to find him, but…" she trailed off. "I'm sorry, you were saying something?" She didn't want to think about Oliver.

Clark looked at her sadly. "Are you afraid of me?" He asked. Felicity shook her head.

"No." She said slowly. "I'm just a little overwhelmed and I think I left my stomach somewhere over Metropolis."

Martha shot Clark a look. "You should give a woman a warning before you abduct her." She said.

"It's not like I make a habit of it." Clark grumbled. "She was in danger and… I just didn't want to leave her anywhere near Lex Luthor." As if on cue, the phone in Felicity's clutch rang. The three of them turned to look at it. Felicity pulled it out and grimaced.

"It's Luthor." She looked at Clark. "What should I say?"

Martha grabbed the phone and picked up. "Hello?" She asked, putting it on speaker.

"Felicity? Where are you?"

"This is Felicity's aunt." Martha said, keeping her voice calm. "To whom am I speaking?"

There was a pause. "Lex Luthor." Luthor said, evenly. "I was just calling to make sure Felicity was alright, she disappeared after the gala."

Felicity felt a stab of nervousness in her gut. Looking up at Clark she mouthed. "Is there a computer?" Clark frowned, but nodded, leading her over to a desk where a laptop was sitting. She turned it on. Martha was still making small talk with Lex.

"It's the most extraordinary thing." Martha said. "I was just thinking about how wonderful it would be to see Felicity, it's been too long and suddenly, I open my door to take out the trash and there she is."

"Interesting." Luthor said. Felicity's fingers flew across the keyboard, the reception in Smallville was spotty, which is probably why Luthor hadn't managed to call her before now. It would also make it difficult for him to trace the call, which is what she suspected he was doing. She just had to insure that it was impossible. Clark hovered over her shoulder and watched her progress with amazement. "Might I speak with her?" Luthor asked. Felicity looked at Martha and made a slicing motion across her neck, shaking her head violently. Martha nodded her understanding.

"She's resting. As soon as I found her, I put her straight to bed. Poor dear, she'd had quite a shock, something about gun men? You need to have better security at your parties. My niece means the world to me and I don't know what I would have done if I had lost her."

"Felicity's never mentioned any family." Luthor said, his tone darkening.

"Well biologically speaking, I'm not her aunt. I'm just a friend of her family who helped raise her." Martha seemed unfazed by Luthor's irritation. Felicity couldn't help feeling admiration for this woman. She recognized Luthor's CEO persona slipping into his words and that was usually enough to make grown men quiver with fear. "I'll tell her you called. Good night Mr. Luthor." Martha hung up.

Felicity sighed her relief. "He was trying to trace the call." She explained. "but I blocked him."

"And he's your boss?" Martha asked. "Why would he think he had the right to trace you?"

"Because he thinks he owns her." Clark growled, his fists clenched so hard against the backrest of the chair that it splintered.

Martha sighed. "You're fixing that first thing in the morning." She shot Felicity a long suffering look. "The reason Clark's so good at building things is that from the age of 10 we had him repair anything he broke." She peered at the computer. "You're really handy with that thing. Clark got it for me for Christmas and I barely know how to use it."

"I could help you with that." Felicity grinned. "It's the least I can do after your help and Clark saving my life…what's this the 3rd time?" She contemplated. "I'm assuming you pulled me away from those muggers and dropped me in front of Verdant, then there's the construction equipment, and now…" She shook her head. "I guess I owe you big."

"No." Clark looked shocked at the prospect. "I didn't do it to expect praise…I just didn't want you to get hurt."

Felicity gave him a shy smile. "I…I still need to go back to Metropolis tomorrow." She murmured. Clark nodded.

"Come on." Martha motioned to the stairs. "I've got some extra pajamas and I can do up the guest room for you. "

* * *

Lex glared at the phone after Felicity's "aunt" hung up. So Felicity had disappeared mysteriously from the gala only to appear on her doorstep. Was she…? No, it couldn't be; he'd seen her standing in front of him when the gunmen disappeared. Then she'd been snatched. She wasn't the angel…but she was connected to it. That much was clear. Why else would it appear in Metropolis the day she came to visit and it had stayed in Starling way longer than anticipated. The "angel" usually operated in random isolated incidents, but Starling City had seemed special. Now Luthor knew why. It wasn't because of the suffering of the people after the destruction of the Glades. It was because it had grown attached to Felicity. Why else would it have singled her out, among all the people at the gala in most need of rescuing?

Lex allowed himself a moment of celebration. So…the all mighty powerful angel had feelings for Felicity Smoak. That was information he could use. At least his false abduction hadn't been a complete failure. He turned on the television. The news had caught on to the Wayne Enterprises origin of the weapons. They were already placing the blame on Bruce's shoulders. It didn't matter if he was innocent; in the court of public opinion he'd already been condemned. Lex grinned smugly; everything had worked out rather nicely.


	13. Chapter 13

"Couldn't we….I don't know, take a car back to Metropolis?" Felicity asked nervously the next morning. She and Clark were standing on the porch of the house.

"That's about a 7 hour drive." Clark smiled. "Why? Don't you trust me?"

"It's not a question of trust." Felicity muttered. "I just have this thing about heights and hurtling through the sky sounds like the kind of thing that would not be fun for me. Especially considering the delicious breakfast your mom made; it would be rude for me to lose it flying over Kansas." She glared at him. "Stop laughing at me."

"I'm sorry." Clark said. "I'm still getting used to the fact that you're more freaked out about losing your breakfast than the fact that I suggested I fly you back." He grinned. "You seemed okay last night."

"No." Felicity said slowly. "Last night, I was too busy focusing on the bad guy with a gun I was sure was going to kill me."

"I won't drop you." Clark said. "I promise and even if I do drop you, I'm fast enough to catch you."

Felicity gaped at him. "Is that supposed to reassure me?" She asked. Martha came out of the house and smiled, watching the two of them.

"How about a test flight?" she suggested. "Clark can fly you to the barn and back and if that goes well he can take you back to Metropolis."

Clark opened his arms. "Come on. Trust me?" He said. Felicity winced and stepped forward.

"Well, there are definitely worse places to die." She murmured as Clark picked her up and she pressed her face against his chest. He chuckled. "I changed my mind." She said, closing her eyes as she blushed furiously. "Fly as high as you can and drop me."

"Never." Clark said. "Ready?"

"Does it matter?" Felicity asked.

"Of course it does." Clark said. "If you'd really rather drive, I can rent us a car."

Felicity took a deep breath. "To the barn and back, then I'll make my decision."

Clark took off, holding her close. He flew over the barn, hovered a bit, then flew back. It wasn't too bad. The wind on her face was pleasant and Clark's presence was warm and reassuring.

"Verdict?" Clark asked. Felicity opened her eyes.

"It wasn't…too horrible."

"So would you be willing to have me fly you back to Metropolis?" He asked.

Felicity bit her lip. "Wouldn't it cause people to be suspicious if I suddenly appeared out of nowhere?"

"There's a park near the waterfront." Martha Kent suggested. "There's a part near the veteran's memorial that is usually abandoned. Your father took me on a few dates there."

"Ma." Clark looked at her in horror as Felicity giggled.

"No one will notice if you land there." Martha continued. "And the two of you coming out of there would explain any clothes that might move during the flight."

Clark shut his eyes in embarrassment. "Thanks ma." He muttered as Felicity laughed.

"Felicity you're always welcome here if you need to escape your crazy boss again." Martha said, handing her a bag with the gown she'd worn to the party in it. Felicity took it and nodded.

"If he really did plan that attack I think it's time to change jobs." She bit her lip. "Thank you so much for everything."

"Of course, dear."

* * *

The flight took about 10 minutes. Felicity closed her eyes and pressed her face against Clark, clinging to his shoulders.

"You can open your eyes now." Clark sounded amused. She looked around, they were in the park.

"So…this seems cozy. I can definitely see why someone would come here to hook up." Felicity said. "Not that we should do that. Let me down, please."

Clark nodded, letting her out of his arms. She took 3 big steps back. "Do you want me to come back to your hotel with you?" he asked.

Felicity shook her head. "Just walk me out of this park. I can do the rest by myself." She smiled. "We're still taking the plane back to Starling?"

"Unless you want me to fly you there." Clark smirked as Felicity shook her head.

"As fun as being pressed against you sounds I think it would make Luthor suspicious that something weird was going on." She said. They walked out of the secluded area of the park. Martha had been right; all the people who saw them just gave them knowing smirks but didn't question Felicity's windswept hair or the way Clark shirt was wrinkled where she'd clung to him.

She smiled at him as they left the park. "I think I can handle it from here." She said "I'll see you at the airport tomorrow?"

Clark nodded.

* * *

"Mr. Luthor." Mercy said as she walked into his office at the Lex Corps.

"What is it?" he snapped, irritated. Mercy didn't so much as flinch; she was used to his moods.

"You asked me to inform you if there was any news of Ms. Smoak. She is downstairs."

"Have her come up." Lex said. Mercy nodded and left. 3 minutes later Felicity walked into his office, nervously looking around at the room. "Are you alright?" Lex stood and walked over to her. She gulped and nodded.

"I'm sorry, it was the weirdest thing. I can't explain how it happened, but one second I was about to be killed by the gunman, then I was on my aunt's doorstep." She bit her lip looking down at the ground. "I just don't understand what happened."

Lex put his hand on her shoulder, she jumped back clearly spooked.

"I'm sorry." She said. "I'm just a little nervous and I…" She looked up at him. "What kind of monster goes into a building and starts attacking people?"

Lex noted that while her expression seemed frightened, but something was off. "How did you get back?" He asked.

"My aunt lives in Gotham." Felicity said. "I took the train."

It seemed like a reasonable excuse, but Lex was still suspicious. Felicity had to be a link to the angel whether she was aware of it or not.

"Well, you are safe; that's the most important thing." He said. "I will have my jet ready to take you back to Starling. I insist." He added as she prepared to protest. "I confess, I feel a small measure of guilt for what happened. Had I not encouraged you to come here from Starling you would have been spared this trauma." He took a moment to revel in the brilliance of his words. The best lies always carried a kernel of truth and he was responsible for the attack, but he wasn't feeling guilty. "You'll take my jet tomorrow. I won't jeopardize your safety again."

She scrutinized his face for a second. Lex saw suspicion and apprehension in her eyes. She was a terrible actress; all her emotions were out in the open for him to see. She didn't trust him and was clearly hiding something from him. He'd just have to get it out of her.


	14. Chapter 14

The jet ride back to Starling was nerve-wracking and awkward. Sure, Luthor's private plane was extremely luxurious and comfortable, but the presence of the man himself kept Felicity on alert. She internally shuddered every time he looked at her, but forced herself to smile. It was such a strenuous effect that by the time they landed in Starling her face was sore and there was a muscle twitching in the lower left side.

"I'll see you at the office tomorrow." Luthor said matter of factly as he steered her towards one of two parked town cars on the private landing strip. It wasn't a question and that irritated Felicity no end. She nodded, not trusting herself to speak.

"Are you alright?" he asked, frowning slightly.

"I…" She shook her head. "It's been a stressful few days." She admitted forcing herself to look at him and deciding to play the damsel card. "I guess I'm a little shaken. Being held at gun point is an experience I'd rather not repeat." She closed her eyes and looked at the ground, attempting to appear submissive. Luthor seemed to buy it.

"Perhaps you would prefer to take tomorrow off." He suggested, pulling the door to the limo open.

Don't look too eager, Smoak. She thought as she nodded demurely. "Thank you, Mr. Luthor." She said, trying to sound as grateful as possible. Luthor was a narcissist so Felicity knew that he would believe anything that made him appear superior. He would love to fill the role of the benevolent boss.

"Call me Lex." He said, smiling at her. She nodded and entered the van. Luthor shut the door and walked over to the other town car. Felicity sank into the seat and let out a sigh of relief.

"Felicity?"

She jumped and screamed, flailing her arms at the driver's seat.

"It's me." The driver turned around revealing it was Digg. Felicity covered her face in embarrassment. Then she leaned forward and threw her arms around him, comforted by the normalcy of his presence.

"The whole world's gone insane." She said. "And you don't even know the half of it."

"Which is why I bought you some Big Belly Burger." He said. "I'm taking you home and we can talk about it." He cleared his throat. "Can you…" He tapped her arm.

"Sorry." Felicity said, chuckling nervously.

"It's just I need to drive." He said.

When they reached her house, Clark was waiting outside.

"Thank god." He said as he saw Felicity get out of the car. "I was getting ready to send a search party."

Felicity nodded. "This is Digg." She motioned to him as he got out of the car. "Digg this is Clark."

"We met." They said, looking at her in amusement.

"Oh right." She muttered. "The construction site." She winced. "I was trying to forget that. What with the whole almost dying thing. Which it appears I'm making a habit of these days."

Digg held out his hand. "It's good to see you again." He was staring at Clark intensely.

Clark tilted his head looking at him with interest. "You know." He said softly. Felicity looked between them.

"What?"

Digg raised an eyebrow at her. "I may not be as smart as Felicity, but I know a pattern when I see one." He motioned towards Felicity's house. "Should we go inside? I didn't buy enough Big Belly Burger for the three of us, but I'm guessing you can run down there and get yourself some before I can blink."

Clark didn't move. "You aren't going to…freak out?" He said.

Digg snorted. "I am planning a very unmanly screaming session for later, but right now I'm trying to understand."

He was getting ready to walk to the door when Felicity grabbed his arm. 'The car." She said. "It's Luthor's. It could be…bugged or something."

Digg nodded. "Okay, I'll be back, but when I do I want answers." He handed Felicity the food and got into the town car. Clark watched him drive away. Felicity put her hand on his arm.

"You can trust him." she said. "He's a good person and he's capable of keeping a secret."

Clark nodded stiffly. Felicity walked towards her door. "Coming?" She asked. He looked down the street where Digg had disappeared, then turned and followed her. She opened the door and went inside.

"Hungry?" She said, holding up the bag. "I'm offering this because there is no real food in this house and I'm a lousy cook. Something which I feel I should share early on in a relationship. Not that I think this is a relationship, it could be, but-" She shook her head. "Stop me? Please."

Clark smiled and shook his head. "I like that you say what's on your mind." He shrugged. "Honesty is something that I can really share with only a few people." He paused then shook his head, clearing his throat he asked. "So, how was the flight with Luthor?"

She shuddered. "I would rather have my wisdom teeth removed again and they were severely impacted. I even have stitches." She shook her head. "Weird tangent. Any way-"

The doorbell rang. Felicity frowned. "Digg couldn't be back so soon." She said, walking forward.

Clark frowned at the door, then his eyes widened. "It's not Digg." He said.

"Luthor?" Felicity asked. Clark shook his head. Felicity put her hand on the door knob. "Should I open it?" She whispered.

"Ms. Smoak." A deep voice said from the other side of the door. "I would greatly appreciate it if you opened the door.

"No one's here." Felicity said, then facepalmed. "Nevermind." She muttered, opening the door. "Who-" She gasped. There were two men on the other side of the door. One was a tall well-dressed middle aged black man with a bowtie and sweater vest. The other was a tall dark haired man wearing a sharp black suit and piercing blue eyes that Felicity couldn't help but recognize.

"Hello." He smiled, "Ms. Smoak, I presume? I'm Bruce Wayne."

"This…" Felicity said slowly. "Is officially the strangest day ever."

Bruce Wayne gave her an amused look. "May I come in?" He looked over at Clark. "Or are you otherwise occupied?"

"Otherwise…" Felicity frowned, looking at Clark. "Oh. No. No no no. I mean not that it would be a bad thing. He's a great guy and extremely attractive and I think we've technically had 3 dates so- oh god why am I talking to Bruce Wayne about my sex life?" She covered her face. To his credit, Wayne didn't seem so put off by her babbling. Clark was blushing.

"Ms. Smoak." The man next to Bruce Wayne held out his hand. "Allow me to introduce myself. Lucius Fox."

Felicity gaped at him. "It's…an honor to meet you, Mr. Fox." She said, taking his hand. The man was a legend in the technological field and the reason Wayne Enterprises had one of the best R&D departments in the world. "Come in." She said, standing aside. "Not to sound rude, but what do you want?"

Wayne looked at Clark dismissively, but Felicity wasn't fooled. The bored disinterested look was calculated and rang false. She'd seen Oliver use a less polished version of it. Wayne was more practiced than he was, but she could still recognize it; he was assessing Clark to see if he was a threat. She wondered what Wayne could possibly be hiding as she shut the door behind them.

"Can I offer you anything?" She asked. "I've got water or very cheap wine that I should probably never mention in your presence."

Bruce shook his head. "Thank you, but no. As to your earlier question, we're here to talk to you about Lex Luthor."

Felicity crossed her arms. "What about him?"

"By now, I suppose you've heard that my company is being blamed for the attack on the gala." Bruce said. "Despite the fact that the weapons were stolen. I need someone to watch over Luthor and gather intel. My sources tell me that you've gotten close to him."

"Not willingly." Felicity muttered. "Why not ask Mercy Graves? She's way closer to him."

"She's also exceptionally loyal to him." Wayne replied. "I have my suspicions that the same cannot be said for you."

While Wayne's assessment of the situation was accurate, Felicity wasn't inclined to trust him. "Why would you risk coming to talk to me?" She said. "I could tell Luthor about this conversation and make your life very difficult for you."

Wayne let out a small surprised laugh. "You actually believe that." He said, amused. "Well, I don't trust you. This is a gambit that I'm making because all my information tells me that you're a woman of integrity." He looked over at Lucius. "In addition someone I do trust assures me that you can be of service."

Felicity looked at Lucius in confusion. "What? But we've never met before."

Lucius gave her a warm smile. "I have my reasons." He said cryptically.

The doorbell rang. Felicity glanced at Clark who gave her a small nod. She turned and said. "Who is it?"

"Digg." Came the reply.

Felicity reached back and opened the door.

"Alright," Digg said, "I dropped off the car-" He paused, looking at Lucius and Bruce Wayne. "Uncle Lucius?" he said.

Felicity's jaw dropped. Lucius smiled. "You see Ms. Smoak. I know the character of my nephew; which is why I know Bruce was right in coming to you."


	15. Chapter 15

"Your….what?" Felicity looked at Digg in shock.

"My mother's older brother." He said, sheepishly.

"You mean," Felicity said moving forward. "That Lucius Fox is your uncle." She planted herself in front of him and glared up at him. "And you never TOLD ME?"

Digg wisely took a step back, then glanced over at Clark.

"No way." Clark said, holding up his hands. "I may be a lot of things, but I'm not crazy."

"Uh uh." Felicity said. "Eyes on me. Explanations. Now." She crossed her arms. Behind her Bruce Wayne let out a small chuckle.

Digg sighed. "It's not like we've gotten a chance to really dig into our personal lives." He muttered.

"What?" Felicity looked taken aback. "What about that day after Oli-…um the earthquake." She and Digg had helped themselves to the unbroken parts of Verdant's alcohol inventory and spilled their guts. "I feel like that would have been a perfect time to mention that you were related to one of the most renowned scientific minds in the country, nay the world."

Digg cleared his throat. "Maybe we should discuss this later." He shot Bruce a pointed look, before turning his attention to Lucius. "Hi uncle Lucius." He said, stepping forward, holding out his hand.

Lucius gave an affectionate shake of his head. "Still so formal." He chided, pushing Digg's hand aside and pulling him in for a hug. "Did you know he used to salute when people visited the house when he was a kid?" He said to Felicity.

"Well he is just full of surprises today." Felicity said.

Bruce was looking over at Clark. "I don't believe I've had the pleasure."

"Clark Kent." Clark said holding out a hand. Bruce looked at him with interest, taking his hand. "I'm a friend of Felicity's." He continued. "She's my-"

"Um." Felicity said. They looked at each other unsure what to say.

Bruce gripped Clark's hand tighter. "As I suspected." He said.

"What?" Clark asked.

Bruce pulled back his hand and opened it palm up. In the center a pin had been attached between his thumb and forefinger. It was bent. "Had you been human it would have pierced your skin."

Clark glared at him.

"What if you'd been wrong?" he asked.

"I rarely am." Bruce replied. The two of them stood, squaring their shoulders; both with the bearing of warriors. Then the final piece of the puzzle clicked into place and Felicity smirked as she looked over at Bruce.

"Neither am I." She said. "Batman."

The room went silent.

"What?" Digg said.

"He's Batman." Felicity said. "And…" She turned to Lucius. "I'm willing to bet that your uncle provides the toys."

Lucius gave her a warm smile.

"And Oliver Queen is the Arrow." Bruce said. "We can go around making shocking revelations all afternoon, but it won't change my reason for being here." He frowned. "In fact it might reinforce your willingness to help me. Luthor's attempting to undermine me by destroying my professional reputation. Fortunately he believes me to be a vapid playboy with little to no influence in my company."

"You're asking me to be a corporate spy." Felicity said.

"No." Bruce said. "I want to warn you that it's not a coincidence that Lex and the so called angel arrived in Starling at the same time."

Clark frowned. "You think he's tracking me."

"I admit that I previously believed you were in league with him." Bruce said. "You're not, are you?" He said, his eyes narrowing.

"If I were, what could you do to stop me?" Clark retorted.

Bruce raised an eyebrow, then turned to Felicity. "Has Luthor done anything to make you suspect him of foul play?"

"You mean besides attention that borders on sexual harassment?" Felicity asked. Bruce's jaw ticked slightly. "There's…" she shot Digg a nervous look before continuing. "We believe he orchestrated the attack at the gala."

"He what?" Digg growled. Felicity sighed. She would have preferred a more measured approach to breaking the news to Digg, but tis would have to do.

Bruce nodded. "I suspected that as well." The corner of his mouth ticked upwards. "Which is why he's infinitely more dangerous now."

"Why?" Felicity said.

"If he isn't working with your friend…" Bruce said, trailing off and looking at Clark.

"Then he's working against me." Clark finished. "Why? I've only been trying to help people."

"If you're asking yourself that, then clearly you don't know Lex Luthor." Bruce said. "He's power hungry and he probably views your use of your abilities to help individuals as a waste. He's trying to find a way to use it for himself."

"Unless he's created some kind of mind control that's unlikely to happen." Clark snorted.

Bruce shot him a pitying look. "You'd be wise not to underestimate Lex Luthor." He said softly. "Few who have ever have the opportunity to rectify their mistake." He looked at Felicity. "He also probably suspects that you are connected to the 'angel'."

"How?" Felicity asked.

"Because you're the only person he bothered to save at that gala." Digg said quietly.

"I took out the gunmen." Clark protested.

"Then abducted Ms. Smoak." Bruce said. "No one else, which means she's special to you. Whether he knows if she's aware of Mr. Kent's identity, Luthor can't help but know that the angel cares about her." He turned to Felicity. "He's going to keep a close watch on you from now on."

"So isn't it dangerous for you to be here?" Felicity asked.

Bruce raised an eyebrow. "I would not have taken the risk in contacting you in person if I hadn't been absolutely certain that I wouldn't have been traced." He looked vaguely insulted.

"I can't stay at QC." Felicity said. "Luthor is beyond creepy and I really don't want to be anywhere near him when he unveils his evil plan of evil." She shivered. "Plus I don't know if I can pretend to not hate him while avoiding clueing him in to the fact that I don't trust him."

Bruce nodded. "I can offer you an escape in Gotham. You can reinvent yourself. Take on a new name and identity and work for me."

Felicity crossed her arms. "I'm not giving up who I am because of Lex Luthor." She frowned. "I'm not giving him that much power over me."

Bruce gave her one of his subtle smiles. "You're brave; would you be willing to continue the charade to gain information on what Luthor's plans are?"

Felicity wrung her hands. "I…I need to think about it. It's not a no, it's an I need to sleep on it."

Bruce nodded. He and Lucius exchanged contact information with Digg and Clark, then left. Felicity sat on her couch. "How is this my life?" she groaned.

"I'm sorry." Clark said, sitting across from her. "This is my fault."

"No it isn't." Digg and Felicity said simultaneously. They looked at each other and laughed.

"Sorry." Felicity said. "But it's really not. We've been dealing with weirdness before you got here." She shrugged.

"So…" Digg said. "You're the angel."

Clark winced. "We need a better codename." He mumbled. "But I am the person who's been helping around the city."

"And how…." Digg trailed off, seemingly at a loss as to how to continue.

Clark bit his lip. "I'm…from another planet." He said. "My…adoptive parents found me when I crash landed in their yard. I grew up on this planet."

Digg nodded. "An alien…from another planet who came here on a space ship." He kept nodding, Felicity shook her head. "What?" Digg said. "Finding out there's life on other planets is overwhelming enough without having the proof in front of me. "

"Really?" Felicity asked. "It's statistically impossible that we're the only lifeforms in the universe. Every star is a potential solar system with the possibility for life."

"But what are the odds that that life looks like us?" Digg retorted.

Felicity shrugged. "It's possible. A planet with a similar atmosphere would create lifeforms that might be close enough to pass for human…the odds of them coming here though…" She trailed off, noting the uncomfortable look on Clark's face. "I'm sorry this is super rude."

Clark grimaced. "It's not like these aren't questions that I've asked myself about a hundred times." He looked wistful. "I don't know where I'm from." For such a big man it was remarkable how much like an adorable space dog he looked. Felicity wished she could figure out a way to find out more…then she realized she could.

"I can fix that!" She blurted out.

Clark and Digg looked at her in surprise.

"I just mean…there are tons of satellites and things monitoring weather patterns. There's probably archived data of meteorites and objects falling from the sky. We could find if they recorded you falling and calculate the trajectory which would give us a general direction to begin looking." She frowned, lost in thought. "Though we'd have to find the exact date and planetary position and take velocity into account…" she trailed off as she caught the bemused looks on the others' faces. "Um…it'll take a bit of work, but it might be doable."

Clark's face broke into a grin.

Felicity stood and grabbed her tablet. "We can use the lair computers and-"

"That," Digg interrupted. "Might be a bit of an issue. Thea's having work done to reopen Verdant."

"Ah." Felicity frowned. "Well, we can just use the alley entrance and hope we don't get caught…" She looked at Clark. "Or you could fly us in…"

"Fly?" Digg said, his eyes widening. "I just thought he ran real fast…which is weird enough to think about as it is."

"He does that too." Felicity said waving her hand dismissively. Digg gaped at her.

"Oh, he does that too?" He remarked sarcastically, shaking his head. "Flying running, aliens and my uncle works for the Batman. What is this world coming too?"


	16. Chapter 16

_**AN: I apologize for how short this chapter is. I got a bit of writer's block and I promise the next one will be longer and more detailed. This is more of a set up chapter.**_

* * *

Luckily for Felicity Luthor had to go back to Metropolis and wasn't at QC the next day. He was gone for the rest of the week which gave her the opportunity to do research for Clark and practice how to handle talking to Luthor without arousing suspicion. Unfortunately by the next Monday he was back and she was summoned to his office.

"Ms. Smoak." He said as she entered. Felicity smiled and sat in the seat he indicated across from him.

"How are things in Metropolis Mr. Luthor?" She asked. Was her smile too big? Did she sound too cheery? Luthor gave her a small raise of his eyebrow before beginning to talk about the possibility of connecting Lex Corps servers with QC and having their security protocols changed. She nodded, giving suggestions when needed. As the meeting went on, a feeling of discomfort began. It was hot in Luthor's office. She shifted, trying to ignore the sweat forming on the back of her thighs, making them stick to the seat. It was gross, she thought to herself, pushing her glasses up her nose where they'd begun to slide. She felt stifled and thirsty. When was the last time she'd drunk a glass of water?

"Ms. Smoak?" Luthor was looking at her with a pleasant look of confusion. She gulped.

"Sorry, Mr. Luthor, I must have gotten distracted. It's just...is it hot in here?"

"Ah, yes." Luthor shot the ceiling a glare before explaining. "Apparently there was some maintenance being done on one of the central air systems and in doing so they damaged my office." He stood. "We can move this to the conference room." He motioned, towards the door. Felicity gratefully got up and tried to keep herself from running to the door. When she entered the conference room, she noted the pitcher of water in the center of the table. Luthor poured a glass before turning to Felicity. "Would you like some?"

She nodded. If Luthor was having the water it couldn't be poisoned and she was so thirsty. Accepting the glass he handed her, she settled in one of the chairs, waiting for the meeting to continue. She was handling herself quite well. She couldn't believe she'd been nervous when Wayne had asked her to keep an eye on Luthor's movements.

* * *

Clark got a text from Felicity as he was leaving the jobsite. She'd found something relating to his arrival on the planet and wanted to meet immediately. Hope and excitement rushed through his veins and it was all he could do to stop himself from flying right over to her apartment.

* * *

Lex grinned at his computer screen. The program was online and functional. He watched as "Subject 1" drove back to her apartment. Where ever she went, whatever she did; he could find her and he could track her. She was his and soon, she'd lead him to the angel.


	17. Chapter 17

Felicity smiled as she opened the door for Clark. "I found something." She turned and walked back to her computer. Clark shut the door behind him, following her. He was clearly excited, but didn't want to seem too eager. He was worried her find might not be worth it; she was going to enjoy proving him wrong. It hadn't been easy to find. Most of the data of that far back hadn't been digitized so she'd had to call in a few favors with a contact at NASA.

"30 years ago, as a meteor storm fell over Smallville, there was a disturbance in the arctic. A team of scientists tried to figure out what it was, but couldn't find anything. I um..." She cleared her throat. "borrowed a satellite to scan it and I found..." She clicked open a photo. "This."

Clark leaned over her shoulder, taking in the sight of the picture. It showed a scan of the ice, revealing a large object buried inside a glacier.

"It's the same shape as the space ship I was sent in." He remarked. "Where is it?"

Felicity pulled up the coordinates. "I just need to buy a coat and some boots and then we can go."

"We?" Clark asked. "You sure this isn't too dangerous?"

"No." Felicity said. "I'm not scared. I mean I've never gone hiking or ice skating, so glacier walking will definitely be new, but how hard can it really be." She gave him a reassuring smile. "Besides I'll have you." She ducked her head, looking away from his intense gaze. "I'll have to see what type of transportation we can get, maybe Mr. Wayne can lend us a Helicopter or something."

"There's no need." Clark said.

"Why?" Felicity laughed. "Are you going to fly us there?" She grinned, waiting for him to laugh at her joke. Her laughter died as he sat on the couch, giving her an amused look. "No." Felicity groaned.

"Yes." Clark replied.

"You can't be serious." She glanced back at the coordinates, reconsidering her insistence on accompanying Clark.

"Oh, I am." He replied. "Get your boots and jackets; it's cold up there." He stood, giddy with excitement, grabbing her and pulling her ff her feet and into a hug. "You have no idea what this means to me." He murmured, leaning back. "I don't think I can ever make it up to you."

Felicity slid her arms over his shoulders, noticing how close his face was to hers. "I...um. You saved my life." She blushed. "And we don't know if this is really connected, I mean it might just be a fluke or a coincidence-" Clark leaned forward and kissed her. Felicity gripped the back of his shirt and leaned in closer, pressing her lips harder against his. Clark broke away, breathing heavily.

"I have hope." He said.

"Hope." Felicity murmured. "Right. Hope is good. Hope is..." She grinned, biting her lip, feeling the bruising remnant of his lips on it. "I think I can have hope."

* * *

Clark barely felt the cold air as they landed at the coordinates Felicity had found. Letting her down, he glared at the side of the glacier. They were on a ridge, about 30 feet up. Felicity pressed herself against the side of the glacier, looking up at the sky.

"I just figured out. Heights are worse when there's ice involved." She closed her eyes. "Please tell me there's an entrance."

Clark looked at the ice face. Inside was the craft and now that he was standing a few feet in front of it, he was sure that it was from his planet. How many hours had he spent looking at his space ship, wondering if it could give him answers as to where he'd come from. He knew the internal wiring like the back of his hand and saw the exact same patterns in this much larger vessel.

He pressed his hand to the ice. "It's here." He said softly. "There's an entrance...about 4 feet up and 8 feet to the left."

"Awesome." Felicity said, lifting her arm and letting him pick her up. He jumped, floating up the rock face. The ice was thinner there. Shooting lasers out of his eyes, he melted away the ice between them and the entrance. He went into the hole in the ice, putting Felicity down next to him. Pressing his hand to the side of the craft's door, he pushed, making it swing open. He suddenly found himself nervous to enter.

"Do you want me to stay out here?" Felicity asked. She was shivering. Even her large winter jacket wasn't enough to keep her warm and yet she was willing to stay out here. Clark put his arm around her shoulders and brought her inside.

"Oh thank god." Felicity said. "I wanted to be understanding, but I was hoping that you wouldn't let me turn into an ice sculpture." Clark smiled. It was dark inside the craft, but as they walked in further a glow began inside the walls, bathing the both of them in pale blue light. Felicity reached out and ran a gloved hand along the wall. "It's warm in here." She whispered, pulling off her hat. There was another door in front of them. Clark hesitated. Felicity smiled. "Go." She said, pushing him towards the door. "I'll stay out here."

Clark opened the door and walked in. Looking around, he took in the gloomy interior, blue light glimmering from the walls.

"Kal-El." A low booming voice came from all around him. "At last."

"Who?" Clark turned, looking around as the projected image of a man in black and grey robes, emblazoned with an S on the chest.

"You, my son." He replied. "I am Jor-El, your father."

* * *

Felicity stood outside, waiting for Clark to either come back out or invite her in. She looked, fascinated, at the walls. She was in a real life space ship. She pulled off her gloves, and walked to the wall, trying to determine what they were made of and why they had lit up when they'd entered the room. "Alien motion sensors?" She asked herself, tracing her fingers along the warm metal.

A buzzing noise came from outside. She frowned; no one usually came to this part of the world and she was sure she'd covered her tracks pretty well. Glacing at the door, she tried to relax. If there was something to worry about Clark would have looked and said something. And yet...she could not shake the feeling that something was extremely wrong. Walking to the exit of the craft, she pulled her gloves back on and covered her head. Climbing out, she peeked over the side of the ice. A helicopter was approaching. Felicity squinted at it. It turned slightly as it approached and she caught the logo on the side and paled in horror. "CL-" She shouted when she felt a jolt through her body and dropped to the ground, unconscious.


	18. Chapter 18

"Father?" Clark asked, hardly daring to look at the hologram in front of him. Jor-El nodded.

"I am sure that the real version of my programming would be so happy to see you." He said.

Clark frowned. "Why...why aren't you here?" He asked. "And," he began walking around the ship, looking at the walls. "Why did you send me away? Where did I come from?"

Jor-El gave him an indulgent smile. "Our planet, Krypton, was destroyed due to our own arrogance. I warned the counsel that our actions would bring about our ruin and that we should evacuate, but they would not listen." he looked at his hands "So your mother and I put you in a shuttlepod and sent you here. We knew that the inhabitants of this planets, though less advanced, resembled Kryptonians. We wanted to come with you...but a dangerous political enemy of mine made that impossible." He shook his head sadly.

Clark was about to ask more when a noise from outside caught his attention. Turning, he looked through the side of the ship. Felicity was unconscious and being dragged onto a helicopter by Lex Luthor. He ran out.

"Ah ah ah." Luthor held Felicity against him and gave Clark a mad grin. "You come near me and I detonate the nanites in her bloodstream."

He wasn't bluffing, Clark realized with horror as he saw the little nanobots in Felicity's bloodstream. Luthor was watching him intently.

"So it's you." He said, softly. "You're the angel." Clark glared at him.

"Let her go." He growled.

Luthor shook his head. "I'm afraid I can't do that, you see these nanites are primed to explode unless I input a code every 3 hours. The clock runs out..." He looked at his watch. "In approximately 10 minutes. If you rescue her, which, you'll probably succeed, I am not your physical equal, then I won't be able to put in the code." He sighed sadly. "So you'll just have to let me go and take her...and wait for my instructions."

Clark clenched his fists. "You won't get away with this."

Luthor chuckled. "You have a weakness; you care. That is why I will always have the upper hand. Don't follow us or I'll make her explode."

Clark watched the helicopter fly away. Pulling out his phone he called Digg.

"Hello?" Digg said.

"He has Felicity." Clark heard the other man drop something metallic and curse.

* * *

"How did this happen?" Digg growled. They were in his apartment and Clark had finished explaining what Luthor had done.

"Did she mention him giving her anything or..." Clark shook his head. "If she was injected with something she would have noticed."

Digg rubbed his eyes. "Well then it's a good thing we've got back up."

Clark raised an eyebrow. "Back up?"

The door opened and Bruce Wayne entered followed by Lucius Fox and a teenager with dark hair. Wayne looked around, then crossed his arms. "Tell me everything."

* * *

Felicity awoke in a fancy bed room, lying on a bed. She sat up, looking around. Luthor had done this; he'd kidnapped her. The window was closed and covered with locked shutters. She tried opening it, but it wouldn't give. She ran to the door, rattling the handle. It was locked. She banged her fists on the door and kicked it. "Ow." She grumbled, grabbing her foot and hopping up and down, pain blooming in her her entire leg. "LUTHOR." She shouted. "LET ME OUT. LET ME OUT NOW."

No answer.

She looked around the room, looking for anything that could open the door. Then it opened on its own and Mercy Graves walked in. Felicity ran at her, hoping to surprise her and get the upper hand to get out. Mercy side stepped and causing Felicity to fly past her and hit the wall outside her door. She scrambled to her feet, and ran. She could hear Mercy behind her, not running, but walking steadily. She ran through hallways; until she came to a door. Wrenching it open, she tripped and fell out into sand. She looked down in shock. Then looked around. Blue skies, sand, and water as far as the eye could see.

"Ms. Smoak." She turned, falling onto the sand, looking up into Luthor's smirking face. Even on the island, he was still wearing a suit. She moved back, trying to put some distance between them.

"Where am I?" She asked.

"A small island owned by an off shore shell company owned by a subsidiary of Lex Corps." Luthor said. "You're my leverage against your friend Clark." He grinned at Felicity's horrified expression. "Oh yes. I know about your boyfriend's little secret."

Felicity was shivering, a feeling of disgust and fear running through her. "What did you do to me?" She said.

"Nanites." Luthor said, kneeling next to her. "The last time you came in my office, I had the temperature raised and the air humidified, making you thirsty and..."

"You spiked the water with Nanites." Felicity groaned covering her face, wondering how she could have been so naive. "Wait a second; you drank it too."

Luthor pulled a vial out of his pocket. "This contains a virus that when ingested killed all the nanites" He waved it in front of her face. Felicity had to resist the urge to grab it.

"So what's your plan?"

"I need your friend's power." He explained, pocketing the vial. "He'll fall in line, as long as I have you. And..." He reached out to touch her face, Felicity jerked back. "Well, one can't deny that this plan has a certain appeal."

"Touch me and I'll throw myself in the ocean." Felicity growled. "Then you'll have lost your leverage."

Luthor looked at her intently. Then began laughing. "She's amusing. Isn't she, Mercy?" He asked, over his shoulder.

"Very amusing, Mr. Luthor." Mercy agreed.

"What are you a robot?" Felicity glared at her. She didn't so much as blink in response.

"I can control your every move." Luthor said, holding out his hand. "Mercy, remote."

Mercy pulled a remote out of her pocket. Luthor took it and began pushing buttons. Felicity suddenly jumped to her feet. "What the-" She tried to fight it, but she'd completely lost control of her limbs. All she could do was watch in horror as she began walking towards the water. "What are you doing?" She demanded as she waded out. Luthor finally let her stop when she was up to her hips. The water was freezing and while she tried to run out, all she could do was shiver in the water.

"I believe you said you wanted to throw yourself in the ocean?" Luthor said, amused.

"Let me out, Luthor." Feliciy growled.

"Or what?" Luthor said. "Oh...it looks like you're about to get a taste of the local wildlife."

A fin had emerged about 50 feet away from her. Felicity screamed.

"Or rather." Luthor said. "The local wildlife is going to get a taste of you."

"Luthor, you need me as leverage.' Felicity said, struggling, but still motionless. The fin slipped under the waves. She felt tears sliding down her cheeks.

"I thought I told you to call me Lex." Luthor said, looking at the remote.

Felicity looked back at where the fin had disappeared, wondering how close the monster was. "Lex, please. Don't let it eat me."

Luthor grinned. Felicity felt her limbs move and she ran, tripping and falling into the water. Half swimming half stumbling she made her way out. Gasping and shivering, she collapsed on the sand.

"Was that so hard?" Luthor asked. He looked down at her. "Go inside and clean up. There's extra clothes. There's no electronics so you won't be able to contact your friend." He smirked. "Enjoy your new home, Felicity. You'll be here a long time."

Felicity nodded. As Mercy dragged her back inside, she had to fight a smile. While Luthor had been forcing her to reenact the beginning of Jaws, she'd caught sight of something across the water. An island with smoke rising out of it's forest. And there was only one person who'd be crazy enough to be on Lian Yu this time...or anytime of year.


	19. Chapter 19

Oliver had been on Lian Yu for five months in an attempt to get over his responsibility to the Glades. Tommy was dead, over 500 people were dead and it was because he hadn't tried hard enough to defeat Merlyn. Being on Lian Yu gave him focus, it forced him have his entire being on survival mode and didn't allow room for his guilt. Then one day, he spotted a helicopter flying overhead. He hid just below the canopy, looking at it as it flew by. It ignored Lian Yu and kept flying. He movesd, following it. Hiding just behind the tree line of the far side of the island, he saw the helicopter land in the furthest island of the archipelago.

He watched, but the helicopter was too far for him to see anything or anyone. There was complex on the island. It was camouflaged, but it was there. Oliver frowned, wondering what was happening over there and how long the complex had been there. He shook his head, ignoring it and going back to the forest.

Then 2 and a half weeks later he caught a light coming from the island. He sat on the beach. Someone was trying to signal. There was a reflection, a flashing light as if it was coming from a mirror. Morse code.

L-i-C-I-T-Y He frowned. "Licity?" He murmured. There were more letters. "S...O...S...F...E...L...I...C- Felicity." She was there and she was in trouble. He needed to get a signal back, but how could he do it without alerting someone on her island...and how did she know he was here? He looked around, trying to think of something when he caught sight of a wisp of smoke from his campfire. Even though he'd put it out, It was still smoldering. The fire...that's how she'd known. He needed to build another fire, in a place where he could see her signal.

It took him about an hour, but he got a fire going. Smothering it, he briefly hoped Felicity knew how to read smoke signals before grabbing a blanket and beginning to signal back. O-l-i-V-E-R.

The mirror light stopped. Then a new pattern began. S-T-A-R-L-I-N-G G-E-T C-L-A-R-K "Clark?" He muttered. "O-K" He signaled back. Grabbing his sat phone, he sighed. He hadn't wanted to go back to Starling, but if Felicity was in trouble and needed this...Clark, then he had no choice.

* * *

Clark was getting frantic. It had been 3 weeks since Felicity was kidnapped and there had been nothing. No instructions from Lex, no hostage demands, nothing. Wayne had his side kick, Dick Grayson, attempt to run searches by hacking satellites, but he'd found nothing.

"Maybe things would go faster if we weren't trusting Felicity's safety to a 12 year old." Digg grumbled.

"I'm 13." Dick said.

"Oh..." Digg coughed and shook his head. "That's better." His phone rang. Clark looked over and saw it was an unidentified number. Digg frowned, then answered it. "Hello?...OLIVER?" He turned and glared. "Where the hell have you been, man?...Yeah I know she's missing...where?..." Digg let out an exasperated sigh. "Damn...where are you?...Lian Yu." He glanced over at Wayne. "Yeah, we've got a way of getting there."

Clark heard the man on the other line ask who the we was. Digg raised an eyebrow. "Don't you worry yourself about that and DON'T MOVE OR DO ANYTHING RASH." He hung up. "That was Oliver, he's apparently been hiding on the island this whole time. He says he caught an SOS from Felicity. She's being held on one of the islands of the Archipelago." He looked over at Wayne. "Anyway we could get a ride?"

Wayne nodded.

"Where's this island?" Clark said. "I can fly there and-"

"You are going back to your arctic spaceship." Wayne said. Clark glared at him. "If we're going up against Luthor on his base, we're going to need to have all the back up we can...that includes any alien insight or tech you can get from your spaceship." He raised an eyebrow as Clark opened his mouth to protest. Clark sighed.

"Alright." He said. "I'll meet you there."

"Kent." Wayne said as he handed Clark the coordinates. "What Sergeant Diggle said about not doing anything rash...that applies to you too."

Clark nodded stiffly; he found his respect for Wayne growing. The man knew about Clark's powers, but wasn't intimidated and treated Clark as though he was an ordinary person. He wrenched the door open. Walking up to the roof of Digg's apartment building, he took off, flying as fast as he could back to his space ship.

"Jor-El." He said, walking into the ship. "I need..." He trailed off as Lex Luthor turned and grinned at him.

"Hello...son of Krypton." He said, mockingly. "How has your week been?"

"Where's Felicity?" Clark demanded.

"Rude, rude." Luthor said, looking around. "I was wondering what was so important about this place and now I know." He sighed. "This...is all I've ever dreamed of..." He said. "You see, I've been having a little chat with your father...Jor-El, is it?" He smirked. "And I found out things about you that you didn't even know about yourself. Clark..." He stopped, putting a hand to his head, momentarily dizzy. Shaking himself he straightened his jacket and smiled. "You weren't the only thing sent to earth. This ship contains the genetic code of all the people of your planet...as well as some samples."

Clark frowned. "What did you do?"

"Oh I didn't destroy them...well. Not all of them, anyways." He smirked. "I did need some of them for testing.

Clark felt weak at the knees. "Test...Testing?"

"Yes." Luthor said. "How else could I make...this." He pulled a syringe out his pocket. it was filled with a glowing blue liquid. "According to my test, this should give me the same powers as you...so you see; I don't need you anymore. Which means I don't need Felicity anymore."

"If you hurt her-" Clark stepped forward and made to grab Luthor, but his hands went straight through. Luthor threw back his head and laughed.

"You didn't seriously think I would come here on my own did you?" Luthor said. "Oh, Clark." He shook his head. "Do you think you Kryptonians are the only ones who have mastered holographic projection?" He shook his head. "Don't worry, Felicity is safe. While I don't need you to do my bidding. I do still need insurance that you won't come after me." He let out a heavy sigh. "And she is so very beautiful."

"Touch her and-" Clark began, but Luthor's hologram had already disappeared.

Clark was breathing heavily, rage pounding in his ears. Jor-El's hologram materialized.

"He did not take all the embryos, my son." Jor-El said.

"I have to warn the others." Clark said, preparing to fly out.

"Kal." Jor-El said. "There is something else I can give you." He motioned to a small tube in the side of the chamber. The front of the tube slid back, revealing a blue and red suit with a large S on the front.

"S?" Clark asked.

"On Krypton it was the emblem of the house of El." Jor-El explained. "In our language, it means hope." He looked over at Clark. "You must have hope, my son. You cannot allow your rage to blind you and make your decisions for you."

Clark glared. "How can you say that?" He growled. "He kidnapped Felicity, he put robots in her blood to manipulate and control her. He stole the genetic material of our people and destroyed it for his own gain." He was shouting at the projection. Jor-El looked at him with a sad smile on his face.

"Which is why you must be better, my son. You need to provide protection for those who cannot protect themselves." Jor-El said. "Provide hope when all appears to be lost."

Clark gulped. "What if I'm not strong enough?" he asked.

Jor-El motioned to the suit. "I believe you are."

* * *

Oliver gaped at the group of people landing on the beach. Digg was the first out of the jet, then a tall man with a dark combat suit, black cowl with pointed ears and a bat emblazoned on the chest. Next was a shorter figure in a green, red and black suit with an R on the chest.

"Who are you?" He demanded.

Digg looked over his shoulder. "Batman and Robin." He said.

"We scanned the island." Batman said; his voice a low, gruff, growl. "Luthor's facility is built into the landscape. There appears to be a large lab and not much else. He has no security, probably trusting the island's geological features to keep her there." He looked over at Oliver. "What can you tell us about the surrounding waters?"

"There's sharks." Oliver said. "And the rocks are treacherous. Even if we had a submarine, we'd run aground."

Robin sighed. "Just once, could the bad guys pick the Bahamas?"

Oliver took his gear from Digg. "The two of you can act as distraction."

Batman turned and gave him a blank look. "Distraction." He said slowly.

"Do you know who you're talking to?" Robin asked.

"We use your jet to fly over. Digg and I parachute out and go in from the North, while you go through in from the South and make a lot of noise to draw their attention to you, while we rescue Felicity."

Batman and Digg shared a look. There was something they weren't telling him.

"What is it?" He said.

"We have..." Batman began. "How should I put this? A tactical advantage that hasn't yet arrived."

Oliver crossed his arms. "What aren't you telling me?" He asked just as a large object crashed into the sand next to them. The group covered their eyes and jumped back. Oliver raised his head. It wasn't an object; it was a man. In a blue and red suit with a giant S on the front and a billowing red cape. "Who are you?" He asked. The man ignored him.

"Luthor got his hands on Kryptonian technology and created some sort of super serum out of embryonic material." He told Batman. "He's planning on injecting himself with it, if he hasn't already."

"You think he'll have your powers." Batman said bluntly.

"He seems to believe so." The unknown man said.

Oliver scanned the sky. "Where's your plane?" he asked. Robin snickered. The tall man looked him up and down before answering simply.

"I don't need one."

"What?" Oliver asked.

"He flies." Digg said. Oliver gaped at him. "I know. After you left things got weird."

 **Luthor's island**

* * *

Mercy led Felicity into Luthor's secret underground lab. She walked in and crossed her arms, sticking out her chin defiantly. Luthor was bent over a tray.

"You know." Felicity said. "It's weird, but I just realized that evilness of a person's lab is in direct correlation with it's position below sea level."

Luthor chuckled and turned, looking at Mercy he gave her a nod. Mercy grabbed Felicity's arms and pulled her towards a table.

"Hey." Felicity said, trying to wrench herself out of Mercy's grasp. "It was just a joke."

"Tie her down." Luthor said.

"No." Felicity said, kicking out, and catching Mercy's leg. The woman buckled slightly, then backhanded her, sending her sprawling to the floor.

"I wouldn't bother." Luthor said. "She's been trained in 6 different types of martial arts. 2 of which she invented."

"Well aren't you talented?" Felicity said as Mercy dragged her to her feet and tossed her onto the table, strapping her down. She closed her eyes. "What are you planning on doing to me?" she asked.

Luthor came close, standing next to the table. "Have you ever heard of project CADMUS?" he asked. "Of course not." He murmured when Felicity looked t him in confusion. "Well suffice it to say that we've been looking for a way to better humanity...and you, my dear Felicity." He ran his hand down her cheek. She shuddered, yanking her face away. "Provided me with the final ingredient." He smiled. "I'd like to thank you." He held up a syringe and rolled up his sleeve. Putting it in his arm, he pressed it down, the bluish liquid in the syringe entering his veins. Felicity gulped as he began convulsing. She hoped it would hurt him. As he dropped to his knees she hoped it would render him incapable of getting back up.

Silence fell then suddenly "AAAAh." Luthor got up and crushed the syringe in his bare hand, the glass not even cutting his skin. "This power...is this what your friend feels?" he turned and grabbed hold of the table next to Felicity, bending it in two. She was horrified, her heart pounding in her chest, she struggled uselessly against the restraints, her head thrashing. Then she caught sight of the tray and realized why Luthor had strapped her down.

"No." She said.

"The way to thank you." Luthor said, "is to make you as perfect as I am now." He grabbed towards the tray.

"No." She said. "Please. No."

"You are so beautiful." He said. "Even more so now that I can really see you." He sighed, picking up the second syringe and brought it to her arm. "Together we will be unstoppable."

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO." She screamed.

* * *

Across the water Clark looked up from examining Robin's scans of Luthor's compound. "Felicity." he said. "She's in trouble."

"Wait." Wayne said, but he ignored him and took off, flying towards the island.


	20. Chapter 20

Pain. Unimaginable pain rushed through Felicity as she jerked and shuddered on the table. Her wrists tore through the restraints, her legs broke free and she rolled over, falling onto the floor. The cool tile dented. Her head was pounding, there was noise all around her. She could hear it all; her heart, the blood moving through her body, the unknown substance rushing to her extremities, the computers, even the air. She began hyperventilating, curling up on the ground as the sound of Luthor's maniacal laughter filled her ears.

* * *

Clark broke into the lab, smashing through the ceiling. Felicity was lying on the ground with Luthor towering over her. She was convulsing, trying to ball herself up.

"What did you do?" He growled.

"I improved her." Luthor said, turning and giving him a mad grin. Clark glanced at his hand and the empty syringe in it. He'd injected her with it; the kryptonian serum. Clark shoved Luthor aside, catching the man by surprise and sending him flying into the nearest wall before kneeling next to Felicity.

"Felicity." He murmured, reaching for her. She shrank away from him, shaking her head.

"So loud." She whimpered. "It's so loud."

Luthor was testing his new strength, breaking lab equipment. "Well, Clark. I must say that this is amazing." He laughed. "I'm invincible now."

Clark stood and squared his shoulders, readying himself for a fight. Luthor didn't seem to be affected by the advanced hearing or sight yet. In addition, he didn't know about the other powers besides strength. He had to act now. Jumping, he grabbed Luthor and pushed him through wall, mortar and stone until they were flying out of the compound. Clark threw Luthor into the water with all his strength. The batplane was flying overhead. Wayne landed. "I'm assuming this means Luthor took the serum." He commented.

"You assume correct."

"This is bad." Robin said.

"No." Clark gritted his teeth as Luthor flew out of the water. "It means I don't have to hold back."

He flew down, forcing Luthor back under the surface, slamming him to the ocean floor. The rocks below them cracked. Luthor punched Clark in the jaw and for the first time in his life, Clark felt pain. they both surfaced.

"I'm going to destroy you." Luthor said, "Then use your power to do what you were too weak to do." He took off. Clark flew after him, vaguely hearing Wayne shouting after him to keep the fight away from populated areas. He grabbed Luthor, forcing him into the upper atmosphere. Luthor hadn't learned to withstand small amounts of oxygen. Felicity was suffering the change because she was being overwhelmed by the senses, assaulted on all sides. She hadn't wanted it and was therefore being ruled by fear, allowing for the entirety of being a Kryptonian on earth to hit her at once. Luthor was focused, driven. If Clark could make distract him long enough, he might be able to make experience the same pain Felicity was in. Which would buy him enough time to figure out what to do with him.

Clark grabbed Luthor and pulled him back, dragging him back to the island, slamming him down to the ground. They rolled around in the sand. Clark punched him in the chest, Luthor coughed, gasping. Clark stood.

"You hear that?" He asked.

"What?" Luthor hissed.

"Listen." Clark held up a hand to stop Digg and Bruce's advance. Robin slipped inside the compound. Luthor frowned...then his expression turned to horror and he clapped his hands to his ears, shrieking. "There's a shark in the water. A rock is about to detach from the side of the cliff face of Lian Yu and fall 50 feet. A turkey is two steps away from a land mine." He knelt next to Luthor. "And there it goes." He said as he heard the sound. "It's taken years of practice for me to shut it all out, but you..." he laughed. "You're feeling it all." He pulled Luthor to his feet. "Smell the air." He growled. 'You can smell the chemicals of your lab, the dust on your clothes, the traces of the food you ate this morning on your fingers." He laughed. "You're not ready to be anything like me."

Luthor made a furious garbled noise and before Clark could react, his hands were at Clark's throat.

* * *

One second Clark was there, comforting her, then he was gone; Luthor along with him and a large portion of the lab ceiling. Mercy made a grab for her, the remote in her hand. Felicity grabbed it and crushed it.

"You're not going to control me." She hissed, swaying and dizzy. She fell back to her knees. She could hear others outside. She needed to get herself under control. If for any reason Clark could hold Luthor off, she had to help. She had to..." She fell to the ground as someone in front of her said, "Felicity."

"Don't talk." She whimpered.

"What happened?" It was Oliver and he picked her up. The contact made her retch; he'd clearly been on the island for the last couple months. She pushed him away and he flew about 3 feet away, crashing into the wall. He coughed, looking at her in shock.

"I'm sorry." She said, covering her mouth. "I...I need to help Clark." She stumbled out of the compound, bumping into walls, her vision shifting from regular to x ray. She pulled off her glasses, accidentally breaking them. Dropping them, she forced herself to keep moving. Oliver was following her at a distance.

"Digg, something's really wrong with Felicity." he muttered, clearly wearing a comm. She heard Digg respond, telling him to make sure she kept out of the way. She moved faster and crashed through wall after wall until she was outside. Clark was holding Luthor by the collar.

"You're not ready to be anything like me." he growled. Luthor was enraged. He put his hands around Clark's neck.

"All that power." He hissed. "What did you ever do to deserve it. You don't use it properly. It's WASTED ON YOU."

Clark gulped and pulled his fist back.

"What are you going to do?" Luthor taunted. "I'm strong enough to kill you now." He laughed. "I thought I'd keep you alive long enough to see my plans for your..." He paused and laughed. "well now my, Felicity. But oh well. Best laid plans and all that." He began exerting pressure on Clark's throat and Felicity saw red. She was sick of people trying to use her. Sick of being helpless and sick of Luthor treating her like she was some piece of property. He was a disgusting human being who would only use his new abilities to hurt. He was terrible and she was done. Her breathing increased and...then she realized that she was actually seeing red...her face was heating up. Specifically her eyes.

"Let him go." She growled. Clark turned to her, his eyes widened.

"Felicity, NO."

Before she knew what she was doing lasers flew out of her eyes and hit Luthor. He was blasted off of Clark and fell to the ground.

"I can't shut it off." She screamed. Clark flew over and grabbed her pulling her away. Luthor was lying immobile.

"Close your eyes." Clark murmured.

"I can't." Felicity said. "I can't I-"

"Yes." He said, holding her. "You can. Focus on your breathing and try to close your eyes."

She took slow gasping breaths. Then her eyes closed. Felicity collapsed against Clark. "How is he?" She asked. He held her, running his hands up and down her back, not responding. His silence was the answer...his silence and the fact that she couldn't hear Luthor's heartbeat anymore. She covered her mouth a wail escaping it. "What did I do?" She said.

"You couldn't control yourself." Clark murmured. "It's not your fault.

"I killed him." Felicity buried her face in Clark's chest, tears rolling down her cheeks. "I killed him."


	21. Chapter 21

Wayne took charge. He pulled out a pair of cuffs and handed them to Digg, telling him to find Mercy Graves. Then he went to inspect the body, checking for a pulse, then shaking his head. Felicity covered her mouth, shaking. Clark pulled off his cape and put it over her shoulders, turning her away from Luthor.

"What do you need me to do?" He asked Wayne. Robin ran up, holding a flash drive.

"Downloaded a ton of stuff that looks extremely illegal. We should leak it," He said, waving the drive around. He paused as he caught sight of Luthor's smoking remains. "Did I miss something?" He clapped his hand to his mouth. "Oh shit."

"Robin." Wayne said.

"He's dead." Dick said, looking up at his mentor. "If there was ever a time to curse, this would be it." He motioned to the body. Felicity's tears increased and she let out a panicked sob. Oliver made to go near her, but he froze when Clarl sot him a glare.

"I've got this." Batman said, motioning to Felicity. "Get her out and somewhere safe; I'll find you."

Clark nodded, putting his arms around her. "Hold on tight." He whispered before taking off.

* * *

Felicity pressed her face against Clark and closed her eyes. Wind whipped by her face. Then they slowed. Clark floated down, landing on the ground. "We're here." He whispered. Felicity swallowed slowly.

"Where's here?" She asked, npt wanting to open her eyes.

"Somewhere safe...where you can adjust to the changes you're going through." Clark replied. She opened her eyes, looking up at him.

"Oh, you mean the fact that I'm a murderer now?" She said. Clark wiped her face.

"It wasn't your fault." He said. "He feed you trackers, he knocked you unconscious, he kidnapped you, he held you for weeks and then injected you with a dangerous untested substance. You were defending yourself."

Felicity looked around, they were standing in the middle of a cornfield next to Clark's mother's house. She was inside, looking out the window and she'd just caught sight of them. She'd be out within 3 minutes.

"Am I going to get arrested?" She asked. Clark shook his head.

"Wayne said he'd come tomorrow. He's taking care of..." He trailed off.

"The body." Felicity finished, a fresh wave of guilt hitting her along with the smell of corn and hay and fertilizer.

Then Martha shouted out, "Clark, is that you out there? With Felicity?" She felt faint and then swooned.

"What happened?" Ma asked as Clark carried Felicity into the house. "And what are you wearing?"

"It's a very long story." Clark said, putting Felicity on the couch and tucking the cape around her. "She's been turned into a human Kryptonian hybrid."

"Kryptonian?" Martha asked, putting a hand to Felicity's forehead.

"It's my species." Clark said, rubbing yhe bridge of his nose. "I'm going to change and then I promise I'll explain."

* * *

"So Lex Luthor is dead." Martha said. They were sitting on the back porch and Clark had just finished telling hrr. the whole story. She'd been quiet the entire time. Felicity was still on the couch and she wasn't coming to. Clark sighed and leaned on his knees.

"She's...going to be over run with guilt and pain and..." He shook his head. "I remember how horrible it was dealing with my abilities when I was a kid. She's lived her entire life without them." He knew she would have trouble adjusting.

"Maybe there's a way to reverse it." Martha suggested.

Clark shook his head. "I don't know." He was about to say more when Felicity began stirring. "She's waking up." He said, standing. "She shouldn't be alone."

He sat next to her as her eyes blinked open. "Where am I?" she asked, putting a hand to her head. Clark could hear the blood throbbing in her head.

"Smallville." He replied. Had she forgotten? It might be easier if she didn't remember. He winced as she covered her face.

"Please tell me that I'm remembering the last 24 hours wrong?" She asked. "In fact please tell me I'm misremembering the last couple of weeks." She drew her knees up and pressed her face against them. Clark put his hand on her shoulder.

"I wish I could." He murmured. She covered her mouth and began hyperventilating. Clark bit his lip. "I know you're scared. That you feel like the world is going to crush you and that there's too much for your brain to process, but..." He took her hand. "I'm sure Bruce can work on something against this and if not, well..." He winced. "I can train you to use these powers."

"Can you also resurrect Luthor?" Felicity asked, closing her eyes. "I...I know he was a terrible person and that he did ...completely unforgivable things, but..." She shook her head. "I shouldn't have killed him. I..."

"I once set a classmate's science project on fire." Clark said. "I know it's not the same thing, but...I was upset because he'd been bullying me and he'd just destroyed mine...I lost control. I didn't know I could do it, but my face heated up and..." He mimed lasers coming out of his eyes. Felicity gave him a blank look. "It's not in anyway comparable, but...I could have easily destroyed the school and everyone in it."

Felicity nodded. "So what happens now?" She asked, quietly.

Clark looked over her shoulder as Martha snuck back into the house. "I think Ma's going to spoil you rotten with home cooking." He gave her a smile. "If you thought it tasted good before, it's nothing compared to how it'll taste now."

* * *

Bruce brought the body into the batcave. Alfred walked down the stairs and raised his eyebrow.

"Well, I suppose that is one way to remove one's business competition." he said. "What happened?"

"We have a new super powered alien." Bruce explained, pulling down his cowl.

Alfred raised an eyebrow. "Should we be concerned?" He asked, leaning over Luthor's body and inspecting the wound."

"I don't think so." Dick said, sitting in the main chair. "I mean, she lost control, but she seems like a good person." He pulled off his mask. "And she was horrified by what she'd done." He shrugged. "It was an accident. Some could even argue self defense."

"Absolute power corrupts absolutely." Bruce said. "There's no way to see how she'll turn out."

"So you're going to what, wait for her to become a psycho killer?" Dick asked.

"I'm going to give her the benefit of the doubt." Bruce said, looking down at Luthor's body, then glanced at the meteorite fragment he'd found. It was glowing green. "I have a theory to test."

* * *

Oliver came into the main room of the Queen mansion and sat on the couch, rubbing his hair with a towel. "So...run this by me again." He said, looking over at Digg. The other man looked away from the TV.

"Felicity met him at the quakesite. He's an alien. He flies. He can lift heavy things."

"And what happened to Felicity?" Oliver asked.

"Lex Luthor." Digg said. "He took over your company."

"How?" Oliver asked. Digg sighed.

"Your mom signed it over." He held up a hand. "Don't ask me why, I don't know." He shook his head. "Luthor was always...creepy around Felicity." He shook his head. "But he crossed a line when he tried to have her taken hostage by armed gunmen."

Oliver gaped at him. "I can't leave you alone for 5 minutes." He muttered.

Digg grabbed the remote and turned off the TV. He turned his entire body to face Oliver. "You were gone 5 months." He said. "You have no idea what this city's been going through since you left. I'm not diminishing what you've been through, but if you really want to protect this city; you can't run away at the first sign of trouble. Maybe you need to take a look at yourself and question what kind of hero you really want to be."


	22. Chapter 22

Her first morning at the Kent farm, she crashed through the stairs ended up under the house. She then discovered that supervision made spiders more horrifying and flew up. She was close to crashing through the roof, but Clark was waiting for her next to the hole in the stairs and grabbed her as she flew out.

"Having a good morning?" He asked, clamping his arms around her waist to stop her momentum. She looked down at the hole in horror.

"How?" She asked.

Clark winced. "You're not used to your own strength." He explained. "You put too much pressure on it and well..." He looked pointedly at the hole, putting her on the step next to him.

"There's pressure" Felicity said. "And then there's wanton property destruction." She covered her face. "Your mom's going to throw me out."

"Everything okay?" Martha said, walking behind them and stopping on the landing, looking down. Catching sight of the hole, she shook her head. "Clark, I"m guessing you remember where we keep the spare wood and nails?"

Clark nodded. "I'll go out to the shed." He stepped over the hole and went down the stairs. Martha put a hand on Felicity's shoulder as she walked past her down the steps.

"You see all the discolored pieces of wood around the house?" She said, pointing to one at the bottom of the stairs. "They were Clark's doing." She grinned. "This isn't my first rodeo and this house can take whatever you throw at it."

* * *

"What's the box for?" Felicity asked as Clark brought her to the back of the house. He put the large cardboard box on the ground in front of them.

"Look inside."He said. "Without..." He held out a hand to stop her when she reached for the top of the box. "Opening it."

Felicity sighed and concentrated. Her vision flickered slightly, but she couldn't get maintain the X-Ray. "Damn it." She grumbled, covering her eye and trying to ignore the pounding in her head. "I think I see a tea set and some crowbars, pieces of firewood...I'm not sure."

Clark nodded, opening the box pulling out a crowbar. "You are going to learn control." He handed it to her. "The most important think you need to learn is restraint. Imagine you're living in a world of paper; the slightest lapse in control and..." He stopped. Felicity felt a slight wave of cold rush through her.

"I think I already know." She murmured. Clark gave her an apologetic look.

"I'm sorry, I should have-"

Felicity took the crow bar. "So what's your plan for this?"

"Hold it in one hand," Clark instructed. "Put out your other hand, palm up. Then gently tap the crow bar with it." She did as he said and the watched in horror as the crowbar bent when it made contact with her palm.

"How?" She said, holding it up and inspecting it.

"This might take a while." Clark said.

"I'll say." A low voice said behind them.

They both turned to see Bruce Wayne looking at them. Felicity's jaw dropped, "how did you do that?" she said, waving a finger at him. "I hear everything, but..." A wave of nausea hit her. She put her hand to her forehead as she lost her footing. "What's happening?"

Clark looked slightly green as well. Bruce seemed unaffected.

"So, I've taken care of Luthor's body. This time tomorrow the news will find that he was trying to rebuild the weather machine from QC's applied sciences division and that he was injured because of a mechanical malfunction." Bruce said, taking the crow bar from Felicity's hand. As he stepped closer, she felt another wave of weakness wash over her. Clark crossed his arms and leaned back a bit. Something was wrong.

"Bruce, what's going on?" She asked, backing up and practically falling against the side of the house.

Bruce pulled a glowing green rock out of his pocket. "I found this in a meteor that fell to earth around the same time you did." He looked over at Clark. "It seemed like too much of a coincidence." He brought the rock closer to Clark who turned a green color as his legs buckled.

"Huh." Bruce said.

"What are you planning on doing with that?" Clark said.

"Nothing." Bruce put the rock back in his pocket. While she couldn't see it anymore; its effect on Felicity was still strong. "But the fact of the matter is I have it...and while I know the two of you are both good people, I want you to know that I have it."

Felicity bit her lip. "Sounds like a threat."

Bruce raised an eyebrow. "Just a statement." He said. "Though it's interesting that you viewed it as a threat."

"Bruce." Clark said.

Felicity stumbled back. "I'll just...I'll just go inside." She clutched at her stomach and threw up before going inside.

* * *

Clark watched her leave, his strength waning. "Bruce, she's not a threat."

"I'm not sure of that yet." He said.

"Well I am." Clark growled. "I happen to trust people."

Bruce gave him a pitying look. "Trust is something that needs to be earned." He said. "And neither of you have mine completely..." He looked over at the house. "Just don't give me a reason to lose the small amount you've gained."

* * *

One year later:

Oliver fought off Slade's henchmen, but there were three of them and only one of him.

"Stop fighting, green boy." The henchmen closest to him said. "The boss wants you alive."

Oliver growled and spit out a mouth full of blood. "Surprisingly, I don't really feel like doing what Slade wants." He said, wiping his mouth.

The goon was pulling his fist to punch him when he was suddenly thrown across the street.

"You must be joking." An angry, familiar voice hissed. Oliver gaped at a blonde woman in a blue and red outfit with a large red S and cape. She was standing with her hands on her hips. It took him a second to recognize her.

"Fe-"

She grabbed the closest henchman and threw him at the other, making them both crash to the ground. Then, taking hold of the front of Oliver's suit and took off, flying. She landed on the roof of a nearby building. "Don't reveal my secret identity to murderous criminals, Oliver." She said. "I can't believe you didn't think to call. Why is it that the city is literally on fire and you didn't call me?"

"I told Digg not to-"

"Well it's a good thing he didn't listen." Felicity muttered.

"I-"

"Hold on a second." Felicity held up a hand to stop Oliver. Tilting her head, she appeared to be listening to something. "Clark just found Slade, he has Laurel." She frowned. "Slade's down. I need to help round up the others."

A man in a similar outfit landed next to Felicity on the roof, putting Laurel down next to him.

"Ollie." Laurel said, running to him and throwing her arms around him. He blinked down at her in surprise then looked back at Felicity and Clark.

"Next time steer clear of psychopaths, ma'am." Clark said. Felicity snorted, nudging him in the side. He nodded and took off.

She stepped on the side of the roof, getting ready to follow. Looking back at Oliver, she gave him a small smile. "It's good seeing you, Oliver...even if it's..." She motioned to the burning city, "during destruction." Turning, she took off, flying off into the sky to save his city. Oliver gaped after her.

"You know her?" Laurel asked.

"I don't..." Oliver frowned. "I don't know."

* * *

"Are they KIDDING ME?" Felicity shouted as she entered the room and slammed the paper on the table. It cracked in two and fell to the ground. Felicity winced, but the damage to the furniture could be repaired or replaced. Her pride on the other hand. Clark stuck his head out of the living room. "I never liked that thing." He said, taking off his glasses. Felicity pulled her glasses off and put her hands on her hips.

"This is your fault." She hissed.

Clark raised an eyebrow. "I'm pretty sure you're the one who smashed the table." The corner of his mouth quirked upwards as he fought to keep his expression neutral.

Felicity pointed to the newspaper that was on the floor. Clark glanced at it. "Ah." He said.

"Ah." Felicity repeated, mocking his tone. "Is that all you have to say for yourself?"

"I'm not the one who wrote it." Clark retorted. "While you are definitely the one who stormed in here and began pulverizing innocent tables."

"Supergirl?" She said, crossing her arms. "Super...GIRL?" She glared. "I can't believe it. It's so unfair."

Clark sighed. "Perry came up with the name."

"Oh so Lois comes up with Superman and that's fine and dandy. But you see nothing wrong with Supergirl?"

Clark crossed his arms. "Technically you are younger than me."

"By like three years." Felicity shook her head. "And I'm an adult." She picked up the Daily Planet" and pressed it to his chest. "You're officially in charge of all media related to me."

"I'll be sure to inform Perry." Clark chuckled. "How was the office?"

Felicity sat on the couch and kicked off her heels. "Well it's official. Lex Corps is now Smoak Industries." She held up her hands, pretending to frame a sign. "We're unveiling the new side of the building tomorrow." She grinned as Clark sat at the end of the couch and tugged her legs onto his lap. "I can't wait for you to see it." She nudged his shoulder. Clark focused on her legs, not meeting her eyes. '"What?" she asked, frowning.

"It's nothing." Clark said quickly.

"What?" Felicity repeated.

"I..." Clark looked over at her, giving her a small smile. "I may have peeked."

"Clark." Felicity groaned. "You said you wouldn't."

Clark gave her a sheepish smile. "I was putting out a fire about a block away and when I checked to make sure everyone was out...I may have seen through the curtain hiding the new sign." He gave her the "kryptonian puppy eyes" Sorry."

Felicity shut her eyes. "I guess." She said. "I could be convinced to not be upset."

"Convinced?" Clark said.

"Yes I-"

Felicity broke off as they caught sight of a noise outside. They both turned to the window. "Bank robbery." Clark said.

"I GOT IT." Felicity jumped off the couch and ran into the bedroom and changed into the her uniform and took a leaping dive out of the open window, flying into the night. Clark got up and watched her go, leaning against the window frame.

"Go get em, Supergirl."

"I heard that." She shouted.

* * *

Felicity and Clark walked up the steps to Wayne manor. They were both wearing their civilian clothes and had their glasses on. Alfred opened the door.

"Ah, Ms. Smoak, Mr. Kent. Master Bruce is waiting for you with the others." He motioned towards a large library. Digg was there, along with Roy, Oliver, the newly resurrected Sara Lance Dick, Barbara Gordon and a new hero from Central City named Barry Allen.

"You'd think that the two fastest people on the planet would be able to get here on time." Dick said.

"Um, excuse me." Barry put up his hand. "Not the fastest."

Felicity crossed her arms and shook her head. "Care to test that theory?" She asked.

"Anywhere you want, Girl of Steel." Barry retorted.

"Let's not get distracted." Bruce growled. "I called you all here for a reason." He shot Oliver a pointed look before continuing. "It's come to my attention that while we operate well separately, there are threats in this world which require cooperation between two or more of our groups."

"Is this about Slade?" Oliver asked.

"Yes." Everyone replied.

"I can't believe you waited until the last minute to call me." Felicity said.

Oliver huffed.

"Hurt feelings aside." Bruce said. "We need to move past our difference in methods and get better at coordinating."

"So should we synchronize our watches?" Roy said sarcastically.

"I don't like the idea of a large team." Oliver said. Dick cracked up.

"Dude." He said. "You've got the biggest team out of anyone in here."

"Eh hem." Bruce said. His sidekick cleared his throat and looked at the ground, pouting when Barbara nudged him. "I propose a new a partnership. A formation of a league of heroes-"

"Let's just not call it The League of Heroes." Felicity muttered. "Because it was lame when the League of Assassins did it." She faltered when Bruce's angry glare turned on her. "Just saying." She mumbled.

"Do we get a new club house?" Barbara asked.

"Definitely." Sara replied before Bruce could say anything. "I'm not working down in the BatCave. It's cold and keeping around those bats is just unsanitary."

Bruce sighed and opened his mouth to say something when Felicity interrupted.

"No islands." She said.

"Agreed." Sara said.

* * *

"Do you really think this whole league thing will work?" Felicity asked as she and Clark flew back to Metropolis.

"I don't see why not." He said.

"Oh I don't know." Felicity slowed until she was floating in the air. "Communication springs to mind."

Clark stopped and turned. "Not between us." He said.

"Of course not." Felicity grinned, taking his hands. A wind blew through them, wiping their capes around them. She floated a little higher so they were eye level, and brought her arms around his neck. Clark raised an amused eyebrow, but put his arms around her waist as she kissed him.

"Never between us." He breathed. Felicity chuckled.

"Well." She said, mussing up the immaculate "super hairdo". "The last one to Metropolis has to clean the apartment for a month." She flew off. Clark gaped after her before shaking his head.

"You're on, Super Girl." He shouted as he flew after her.


End file.
